


Colors of Life and Death: Book 1

by Wendy Winchester (Songbrd21)



Category: Naruto
Genre: Canon Divergent, F/M, Kyuubi is a pervert, Naruto and Sasuke are adoptive brothers, Naruto's voice cracks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-08
Updated: 2019-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-02 02:31:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 37
Words: 102,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13308543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Songbrd21/pseuds/Wendy%20Winchester
Summary: Naruto is taken by Orochimaru and through gruesome torture, Naruto's chakra will begin to change into something only ever heard of...in legends.





	1. Into the Dark

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers up to chapter 232 in the manga or episode 134 of the anime. After that, it diverges from cannon.
> 
> I am warning you right now: This fic will contain some extremely gory stuff. If you can't handle that then don't read. However, always remember, no matter what happens in this fic, that I LOVE happy endings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  
> 
>   
> 

Sasuke, Sakura, and Hinata sat, scarcely breathing, behind a rather large row of bushes. Hinata had her Byakugan activated, watching the two ninjas guarding a small building nearly two-hundred feet away.

 Sasuke was angry. He had just gotten his life back and now that damned snake had stolen the person he thought of as his brother.  _"How?"_  he thought.  _"How the hell did he get him without a fight?"_  His hands balled into anxious fists...waiting for the signal to move. He rubbed the back of his neck where the curse seal used to be.

 Not long after Naruto had brought Sasuke home, and thanks to the help of a seal expert from the Hidden Sand, Tsunade had managed to remove the seal from the young Uchiha.

 After a day of healing both Naruto and Sasuke were moved to a room in the out-patient ward of the hospital. Two days after that Tsunade had decided Sasuke's actions had been mainly the fault of the seal and declared him safe from all persecution.

 Sasuke thought back to the third day after Naruto had brought him home....

  

 

 

\---------------------------------------FLASHBACK--------------------------------------

 

"Hey, Naruto?" Sasuke mumbled as he sat up in the hospital bed he'd been laying on. He winced as Tsunade attended the numerous wounds that Naruto had had to inflict to beat some sense into him. However, it would take more than a skilled medical nin to heal the wounds of his heart.

 Naruto looked up from his seat next to the bed. "What?"

 "What was that thing?" Sasuke asked, causing his best friend to freeze in place.

 Naruto knew exactly what Sasuke was talking about. He looked at Tsunade, as if asking for her permission to tell his story. She nodded and stood to leave the room.

 Naruto took a quick, but deep breath. "Thanks, Tsunade....sama," he said as though using the word 'sama' in reference to Tsunade was difficult.

 Tsunade froze in place for a moment, an eyebrow cocked in surprise. "Did that brat just show me respect?" she thought in mild amusement. She then smiled, nodded and left the room, quietly shutting the door behind her.

 Naruto sat in silence for a few moments. He gulped and looked at Sasuke.

 Sasuke was getting impatient, but he knew pushing for a break from the silence might make Naruto lose his nerve.

 "Haven't you guessed yet?" Naruto asked. Although it was more of a statement, since he knew the answer.

 "Of course I haven't, dobe," Sasuke replied in frustration.

 Naruto ran a hand through his thick blonde hair and sighed. "How much do you know...about the Kyuubi?"

 Sasuke's eyes went wide as dinner plates as suddenly, horribly, it seemed to all make sense. He could only hope that his instincts were wrong for once. "You...you're...the nine tails??" he stammered, fighting the urge to back away.

 "No. But it is sealed inside me...." Naruto answered, fully expecting his best friend to tell him to get out. Or call him a monster and then....

 "That explains it."

 Naruto looked up, tears threatening to fall from his eyes.

 "Everything. It all makes perfect sense now," Sasuke finished. He noticed the look of disbelief on Naruto's face. "Did you think I'd call you a monster?" Now Naruto's eyes went wide. Sasuke saw this and suddenly felt sick to his stomach. "You did. Didn't you?"

 Naruto slowly nodded.

 Silence ensued for a long while as Sasuke considered his response. Finally, he spoke again. "I'm sorry," Sasuke said, regret deep in his voice.

 "For what?" Naruto asked as he wiped his eyes with his arm.

 "For making you doubt me like that. For making you think I'd so easily call you a monster. Especially when the real monster...is me." Sasuke looked down as he finished his sentence, missing Naruto's expression, which was a mixture of confusion and surprise. "I nearly betrayed Konoha. Nearly...killed you," he continued as he stared at his right hand. The very same hand that had held the deadly chidori just a few days earlier. "This hand...it was..."

 As Naruto watched in amazement he saw something that he had never thought possible. There were tears in the eyes of Uchiha Sasuke. "Sasuke?" he thought in question.

 "It was through your body. I...I could feel...your...your blood...your organs...and...and it didn't bother me!" Sasuke said in a choked voice.

 Naruto reached a hand out toward his friend. "Sasuke...." he began.

 Sasuke slapped Naruto's hand away. "NO! Don't you get it???" he screamed in rage and sadness.

 "Sasuke...it was the seal..." Naruto began.

 "I ALMOST KILLED YOU!!!!" Sasuke screamed as tears began to flow. "I was so absorbed in avenging my family that I didn't even see the one I had!!!" he cried.

 Naruto couldn't believe his ears. "Family? You consider me...family?" he said as the tears returned to his eyes.

 "You, Sakura, even Kakashi. You're all I have....and I nearly destroyed that. I nearly lost everything...again..." Sasuke said as his tears soaked into his shirt.

 Naruto suddenly looked very determined. "Sasuke...I...I'll help you."

 Sasuke looked at Naruto. "What?"

 "I said I'll help you. I'll help you kill Itachi," Naruto said with conviction, but expecting to be yelled at for suggesting that Sasuke should need help. When no such yelling came he continued. "You don't have to carry that burden by yourself. Sakura and I are here for you. You're not alone anymore."

 Although he hadn't said anything, Sasuke was gritting his teeth to keep from telling Naruto that it wasn't his fight. But he decided that, at the current time, it wasn't worth it. He hurriedly wiped his eyes. "Arigato." He suddenly straightened himself and looked like he had decided something. "Naruto..."

 "Yeah?"

 "Take off your jacket and hold out your arm," he instructed, earning a very strange look from the blonde-haired gennin.

 Naruto cocked an eyebrow. "Huh?"

 "Just do it," Sasuke answered.

 Naruto sighed and did as was requested of him. Sasuke turned to face him and made a series of seals. After the last seal his right index finger had a small glowing symbol hovering just in front of the tip. Naruto looked closer at it. His eyes widened when he saw the symbol was actually the kanji for 'Uchiha'. Just then Sasuke spoke.

 Sasuke was staring at the kanji. "I never thought I would use this jutsu. Normally only the head of the family is allowed to." He reached forward with the Kanji and touched Naruto's right bicep.

 A small hissing sound was heard as Naruto flinched. "Hot hot hot!" he yelled indignantly. After the burning stopped he looked at his arm. The symbol of the house of Uchiha was quickly healing into a scar. He looked up at Sasuke.

 Sasuke smiled. As much as Sasuke ever did smile anyway. "Now you are my brother...officially. In my family's records, you will be listed as Uchiha, Naruto."

 An impossibly huge grin spread across Naruto's face. "HA HA!!!" he laughed in joy as he launched himself at his newly appointed brother, knocking him over in a huge bear hug.

 Sasuke was immediately annoyed. "Get off of me! DOBE!!!" he yelled.

  

 

\---------------------------------------END FLASHBACK---------------------------------------

 

Sasuke was brought out of his reverie when the trio heard an explosion to the east. The sound ninjas that were guarding the building left instantly. "That's the signal! Let's go!" he said with authority.

 They reached the door. Sasuke, who had been designated team leader in Kakashi's absence, ordered Hinata to activate her Byakugan one more time to make sure they hadn't been seen. "Sakura, open the lock," he commanded.

 Sakura made a short series of seals. A small stream of chakra leaked out from her fingers and entered the lock. In less than two seconds a click was heard that indicated the lock was open. She made a slight smile of satisfaction. "Ready," she said.

 Sasuke nodded in agreement. "Go slowly. We don't know if there are any traps."

 Both girls nodded in agreement and walked inside. Sasuke turned to Hinata. "Hinata, your Byakugan," he half asked, half commanded.

 The black-haired heir to the Hyuuga clan shook her head. "Mm mm. The walls are too thick and the...they are s...solid cement."

 Sasuke frowned. "Alright then. Split up and search. If you find him, contact me," he said, pointing to his headpiece microphone.

 Both girls nodded in agreement and disappeared. Only small puffs of smoke echoed their existence. Sasuke immediately set off on his own path. He ran quietly, yet swiftly, and soon found himself in front of a heavy iron door. He took a calming breath and pushed it open...he nearly vomited.

 The stench of death and decay found the young ninja's nostrils. As he surveyed the scene in front of him he took out a small, circular tin, opened it and put some of the menthol scented paste that was inside on the skin under his nose to block out the smell.

 There were bodies everywhere. Most hung from the walls. The ones on the floor lay in piles of their own entrails, which had spilled out from wounds obviously made by some sharp implement. A large number of them still had their eyes wide open as they had been in their moment of death. Sasuke glared at the sight before him in disgust. "That sick, son of a b...." he was cut off as he heard Sakura's blood-curdling scream. He bolted away from the ghastly scene in the room he had found and ran toward the sound with dread.

 He ran as hard as he could. Something in Sakura's scream had made him afraid of what it meant. His shoes made very little sound as he ran from door to door, looking for her. He was nearly impaled by a pointed wooden pole when he opened one door. Another door lead to a second chamber of horrors like he had found earlier. He quickly shut that one and pushed on.  _"Dammit!,"_  he thought in anger and exhaustion.  _"Where the hell is she?!"_

 He went down a flight of stone stairs and made a sharp right when he thought he heard the sounds of someone retching. His lungs felt like they were on fire by the time he found Sakura. Hinata was there too. And apparently, she had been the one throwing up, as she was on her hands and knees, a pool of vomit on the floor in front of her.

 "Sakura! What is it?!" Sasuke asked as he took the last few steps needed to reach her position. Sakura was shaking badly. Her eyes were impossibly wide with shock as she stared through an open door in front of her. "Sakura..." he said as he touched her shoulder. The pink haired kunoichi didn't respond. "Saku...ra...." he barely got out as he saw what had caused his friend to scream.

 The room the door lead to was pitch black, except for a hanging lamp in the center that illuminated a small table. What was on that table nearly caused Sasuke to scream as well. "Na...Naruto....?"

 At the mention of Naruto's name, Sakura fell to her knees and began crying loudly. Hinata sat back up from her 'mess' and started to hyperventilate, bits of sobs being heard in between her desperate gasps for air.

 It was nearly thirty seconds before Sasuke could will his legs to move. He walked slowly, as if in a trance, toward the table.  _"This can't be right,"_  he thought.  _"It's got to be a nightmare."_  He stopped about a foot from his destination. His breath caught in his throat as he stood there, staring at the mess in front of him.

 The usually spiked, blonde hair was matted to his head with sweat and speckled with blood. The blue eyes were closed. The orange jacket and black t-shirt lay on the floor. The blood was absolutely everywhere. From his collarbone to his waistline...he had been cut open. His muscles in that area were all visible, owing to the fact that his skin on both sides of the cut had been peeled back like an open magazine.

 Finally, Sasuke's vision came to rest on his brother's right arm...and the mark of the Uchiha clan...smeared with blood. This was all it took for Sasuke to lose it. He dropped to the floor, threw back his head and screamed....

 And screamed....

 And screamed.....

 


	2. The Cold Slap of Fear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Speech in bold represents Kyuubi.
> 
> Please review. I love reviews! Thanks!

Kyuubi laid on the floor of his cell in misery, watching the boy in front of him grow weaker. He gritted his teeth in anger. His 'container' was dying and there was nothing he could do this time because Naruto had been laid open. He could heal holes easily, but this? He sighed for the hundredth time and waited for the inevitable cold to claim him.

 "Hey, stupid fox?" Naruto said weakly.

 Kyuubi cracked open one eye and stared at the boy in irritation. **"What?"**

 "I'm glad I have company at the end. Even if it's you," Naruto replied with a weak, yet wry smile.

  **"Hmpf. Same to you, brat,"**  Kyuubi said as he closed his eye again.

 "I just wish it wasn't like this," Naruto said sullenly as he managed to pull himself to a sitting position, resting his arms and head on his knees.

 Kyuubi groaned at his silence being interrupted again.  **"What?"**

 "If I had to die, I would've liked to have at least died in battle. Not lying on some...." he began as the room around him started to brighten.

 Kyuubi growled. He knew what was coming.  **"Don't you dare...Not again..."**

 In a flash, the room was gone and replaced with the room with the table. Naruto struggled weakly against the two ninjas holding him. "If I wasn't drugged you losers would be toast!" he said as his legs went out from under him.

 "Remove his jacket and shirt," said a familiar voice. Naruto's eyes widened as he saw Orochimaru come out of the shadows.

 Kabuto wheeled in a tray of medical instruments. A snap of adrenaline ran through Naruto. "No! No!" he screamed as he temporarily broke free from the grasps of his captors. They recaptured him and pulled off the clothing as their leader had instructed, then forced him down on the table.

 "A pity my unsealing jutsus didn't work. This method produces results so rarely," Orochimaru said with a sick smile on his face.

 Naruto struggled as much as he could in his condition. Orochimaru gave Kabuto a look. Kabuto nodded and prepared a syringe. "NOOOO!" Naruto screamed again as the needle was put into his right bicep. Kabuto pushed the plunger and the liquid inside the syringe eased it's way in. A small trickle of blood crossed the Uchiha symbol.

 Naruto quickly began to feel his body going limp and numb. Tears leaked out from his eyes as Orochimaru picked up a scalpel. "C'omon," he pleaded, "at least knock me out," he said, fear evident in his voice.

 Kyuubi was growing more and more irriated as he watched the scene as it played out in front of him. He despised being sucked into Naruto's waking nightmares.  **"Wake up you dumb brat!"**

 "Ku ku ku. If I knock you out it won't be any fun," Orochimaru said coldly as he moved toward the young Leaf ninja. Naruto's eyes seemed to go wider than humanly possible. Orochimaru brought down the scalpel and Naruto screamed.

 

 ::Flash::

 

 The room disappeared and was replaced by the cell and the alcove in front of it. Naruto was on the floor, breathing hard. "Dammit," he growled. "It's not bad enough I'm dying, but do I have to keep going through that again?" he said angrily.

  **"It's because you keep dwelling on it!"**  Kyuubi answered in frustration. Another scream echoed throughout the dungeon-like room. This was the last straw for the giant fox.  **"I said to stop...!"**  he began.

 "That wasn't me!" Naruto snapped. He looked up at the ceiling. "It sounded like...Sakura." His eyes widened. "Oh God. That means she's seen me." He gritted his teeth. He hated to hear Sakura in pain. Especially if he was the cause of it.

 Silence followed for another fifteen minutes, so when the next scream came, Kyuubi got so irritated that he dug gouges into the floor of his cell. The second scream was masculine.  **" _NOW_  who is it?!"**

 Naruto's eyes widened again. "Sasuke?! He....he's screaming like that....over...me?" Then he remembered Sasuke making him his brother and the emotion of surprise left his thoughts. "I'm so sorry Sakura...Sasuke." He began to cry. "I want to come back for you. But I...I can't" he said as be burst into tears.

  **"That Sasuke brat's chakra, it's right next to us,"** said Kyuubi with a hope in his voice that Naruto didn't understand.

 "What?" Naruto asked as his sobbing subsided.

  **"Tell me that friend of yours is as smart as you've said he is,"**  Kyuubi asked with urgency.

 "Ye...yeah," Naruto replied, even though he didn't understand what was going on.

  **"Alright then,"**  Kyuubi said. He began to focus his energy on the gaping wound in his container's chest.

 A strange feeling suddenly overcame the grief stricken Sasuke. For some reason he felt compelled to look at Naruto again. He stood, his eyes closed. When he finally got the courage to open his eyes he gasped. "Th...this is?" he stumbled over the words in wild hope.

 Red chakra was leaking from the edges of the flaps of skin that made up Naruto's midsection. "Is the Nine Tails trying to...?" he said as he reached a hand towards the glow. He desperately hoped he was right as he gingerly began to push the flaps back into place, resisting the urge to throw up.

 As soon as the second piece was in place all the cut lines became blindingly bright for a moment and then began to sizzle.

  **"It's working. I think you might make it kid,"**  Kyuubi said as he began to breath heavily.

 Naruto looked at the fox in confusion. "What?! How!"

  **"I let him know I was still here. He's pushed your wounds together."**

 Naruto's eyes lit up with hope.

 Sakura didn't know how long she'd been crying. But when she looked up she saw Sasuke doing something that, for some reason, made her blood boil. "Sasuke!" she roared, sounding very much unlike herself.

 She stood up and ran over to the table. "What do you think you're DOING?!"

 Sasuke's eyes went wide. "Sakura?" he said, stunned. He'd never heard Sakura so furious with him before.

 Sakura reached over and tried to pull Sasuke away from Naruto. "Sakura! Stop it!"

 Sakura's eyes became desperately sad. "Leave him alone! You can't do anything! He's already...he's already dead!" she screamed, her voice cracking from the emotion.

 "Sakura," Sasuke said. Sakura began to wail loudly. Sasuke grabbed her shoulders. "SAKURA!" This stunned her into silence for a moment. Before she could start up again he jabbed his finger in Naruto's direction. "LOOK!"

 Sakura turned her head to the side and looked down. "NO!"

 Sasuke forcefully turned her around to face Naruto. "LOOK!"

 Sakura took a deep, sob filled breath and opened her eyes. She gasped. "Is...is he....?"

 Sasuke nodded. "Kyuubi's trying anyway. Now all we can do is wait."

 That was all it took for Sakura to run back towards the door. "Hinata!"

 Sasuke watched as Sakura excitedly told Hinata the news. "WHAT!?" Hinata yelled. Which was very strange to hear from such a normally quiet girl.

 Both girls ran back to Naruto and Sasuke. As soon as Hinata saw the healing wounds, tears of joy rolled down her face. She bravely touched his chest, ignoring the burning sensation this brought. "Do your best, Naruto-kun."

 "Don't you dare die on me, Idiot," Sasuke said with tension in his voice.

 "Naruto...please. Come back to us," Sakura pleaded.

 Inside his mind Uzumaki Naruto was overcome with joy at hearing everyone's voices.  _"Please, let this work,"_  he thought to no one in particular.  _"I want to live."_

 Suddenly, Naruto fell to his hands and knees. "AHHHHGGGGGG!!!" he screamed, clutching his midriff. Now that he was coming back from the brink of death he could feel the pain of his wound being sealed.

  ** _"Hang on brat,"_**  Kyuubi said, not out of concern for Naruto, but for his own existence.

 Finally, all was quiet. Sasuke, Sakura, and Hinata watched Naruto and held their breaths. Waiting...for a miracle.....

 


	3. Healing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A doujin page from this chapter is at the end. It was drawn by the amazing Charu-San :D

No matter what he tried, he couldn't open his eyes.  _"Why?"_  he thought.  _"Why can't I wake up?"_  He turned to Kyuubi. "You said I was gonna make it!" he said in anguish. Then he stopped, and stared at the giant Kitsune.  _"Is he...becoming transparent?"_  "Hey, stupid fox? You okay?"

 Kyuubi was indeed less opaque than he'd been a moment ago and he knew it.  **"Damn you...brat,"**  he said through gritted teeth.

 "What did I do?" Naruto said to counter the insult that had been tossed his way.

 Kyuubi's breath became ragged.  **"You let yourself become a science experiment...that's what."**

 Naruto was angry now. "I didn't  _let_  myself become anything! They drugged me! And why the hell does it matter to you anyway?!"

 Kyuubi growled. It sounded...strained.  **"Because I'm almost dead!"**  he snapped.

 Naruto's eyes went wide. "What?" he said in disbelief.

  **"There was too much damage. I didn't realize it. My soul is too weak to stay now...damn you,"** Kyuubi said with a small cough, which was a strange sound coming from such a large animal.

 Naruto became oddly quiet.  _"Why do I feel like part of me is dying?"_  he thought.  _"Maybe cause, he's always been with me."_  "Thanks," was the only thing he could think of to say.

  ** _"Hmmm. Maybe part of me can stay..."_**  He rolled one large eye toward Naruto.  **"Hey, brat."**

 "What?" Naruto said in irritation.

  **"I'm gonna give you a going away present."**

 "Present?" Naruto said suspiciously as he stood up and walked over to the Nine Tails.

  **"Come closer."**

 Naruto instantly stopped. "How stupid do you think I am?! I'm not gonna let you take me with you!"

  **"HA! Why would I want to listen to your nonsense for all eternity?"**  Kyuubi answered in mild amusement.  **"Now come here! I don't have much time left."**

 Naruto took a deep breath and moved closer to the seal cage. The instant he got next to the bars Kyuubi whipped out one of his claws and stuck it right through him. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Naruto screamed, the pain so intense he nearly blacked out.

 

* * *

 Sakura was the first to notice it. "He...he's breathing!" she said excitedly.

 Sasuke actually smiled a little more than his usual smirk. "Nice work, dobe."

 Hinata lowered her head. "Thank God...Thank God," she said as she shed tears of relief.

 

* * *

 A moment later the pain subsided. Naruto collapsed to the floor.  _"I'd rather get cut a hundred more times than go through that again,"_  he thought. He looked at the cell. "WHAT THE HELL DID...you do?" His words reached nothing but dead air. Kyuubi...had vanished.

* * *

 "Why isn't he waking up?" Hinata asked with concern clouding her delicate features.

 "He went through a lot," Sakura replied. "It might be a few days," she said as she wiped some of the blood and sweat off of Naruto's forehead with a small towel from her side pouch.

 Sasuke was about to suggest they get out of there when a clear ripple of energy blasted outwards from Naruto's body, knocking them all away from the table with great force. Sasuke skidded to a stop roughly six feet away from where he had started. He looked back at the table. Everything seemed quiet again.

 Sakura came walking back to the table. She was holding her head. "What do you think that was Sasuke-kun?" she asked. "Dammit! What the hell was that?!" Inner Sakura raged.

 Sasuke squinted in confusion. "I don't know," he said quietly. "Let's get him out of here." He pushed Naruto up to a sitting position. "Sakura, you get the other side," he said as he put one of Naruto's arms around his shoulders.

 "Yeah," Sakura replied as she moved into position. 

* * *

 As they came out of the front entrance a very loud signal flare shot into the sky. It looked like it was only two-hundred meters away. "Shit. That's the warning signal," Sasuke remarked. "Hinata, you move ahead. We need your eyes."

 "Nm," Hinata replied as she shot forward in the direction of Konoha.

 Sasuke and Sakura hurried as quickly as they could considering the circumstances. "I hope Kakashi sensei is alright," Sakura said.

 "Ahn," was Sasuke's only reply.

 

* * *

 "Hokage-sama!" said a Leaf Jounin.

 Tsunade picked up her head from where she'd had it lying on the desk. "What?" she asked sleepily.

 The jounin's eye twitched.  _"I can't believe she was sleeping,"_  he thought. "They're coming back!"

 Tsunade was instantly more alert. "Bring me to them!" she said, leaping over the desk and scattering papers everywhere.

 

* * *

 Tsunade's heart was thundering in her chest as she leaped from rooftop to rooftop, following her subordinate.  _"Please be alive. Please be alive,"_  she thought, tension tight in her stomach.

 Suddenly the Jounin pointed to their left. "There, Hokage Sama!"

 Tsunade squinted. She could barely see them. They were just outside the gates, moving fast. Sasuke and Sakura were in front with Hinata bringing up the rear, making sure they hadn't been followed. She set her face in determination as she picked up speed, leaving her subordinate in the proverbial dust.

 Sakura smiled. "There're the gates, Sasuke-kun!" she said...just before someone landed right in front of them, causing them to literally have to dig their heals into the ground in order to stop in time. "Tsunade-Sama?" she exclaimed in surprise.

 Tsunade was breathing hard. "Is he? Alright?" she said with worry

 Sasuke answered. "We think so," he replied as Hinata came to a gentle stop behind Sakura.

 Tsunade nodded. "Give him to me. I'll take him to the hospital. You three, follow. I'll want your reports."

 Sasuke and Sakura nodded and handed over the unconscious Naruto. Tsunade took off in the direction of the hospital.

 As they went on, Sakura began to get a knot in her stomach.  _"How are we going to explain what we saw. I don't even want to think about it...much less say it out loud."_

 When they reached the hospital a doctor was already waiting outside the entrance. "Follow me, Godaime-Sama," he said as he made a small bow out of respect. Tsunade nodded and together they disappeared through the glass doors.

 

* * *

 As the doctor who had led them inside emerged from the double doors of the intensive care unit Sasuke, Hinata and Sakura all stood. "H...how is he?" Hinata said softly.

 "He's resting comfortably. Tsunade-sama is working on reducing the amount of scarring he'll have. It may take a while for him to wake up, but I think he'll be just fine," the doctor replied, smiling warmly.

 "Can we see him?" Sakura asked.

 "Of course. Follow me, please," the doctor said as he began to walk.

 

* * *

 Sakura had seriously started to hate hospitals. Every time she was there it was because someone she cared about was hurt and she was tired of it.  _"Why does it always seem cold in here?"_  she thought.

 The doctor stopped in front of a door. "He's in here," he said.

 The door opened and Tsunade appeared. "Thank you, Akito," Tsunade replied with a smile.

 "You're welcome, Tsunade-Sama." And with that, he turned around and walked away.

 Sakura looked up at the fifth Hokage quizzically. "You know him Hokage-sama?"

 "Yes. He's a cousin of someone who was very dear to me," she said as she walked through the door.

 The kids wisely took that as a sign that they shouldn't ask about it anymore and simply followed the Fifth.

 As they sat down in the chairs that were at Naruto's bedside Tsunade spoke. "Now, please tell me what happened."

 The three genin looked at each other. Both Hinata and Sakura looked down. Sasuke sighed.  _"I guess I have to do it."_

 "We went inside the building and split up. While I was searching, I heard Sakura scream. I found her. Then I saw Naruto lying on a...table," he began.

 Tsunade visibly stiffened, her breath caught fast in her throat. "Continue."

 "He was...cut open. All the skin on the front of his torso had been peeled back," Sasuke said quietly.

 Instantly, a fire entered Tsunade's eyes as she balled her hands into fists. "That  _bastard_!" she yelled as she shattered a nearby chair with one punch. "I'LL GUT HIM!"

 This stunned Sasuke.  _"I didn't know she cared so much about Naruto."_

 Just then a nurse poked her nervous face through the doorway. "I'm very sorry, Tsunade-Sama. But I must ask you not to be so loud."

 Tsunade sighed with frustration. "Of course," she said stiffly.

 The nurse flashed a quick, nervous smile before pulling her head out of the room and closing the door.

 Tsunade turned her attention to Sasuke once again. "Continue," she said firmly.

 Sasuke cleared his throat. "I...we thought he was...dead. But I noticed Kyuubi's chakra trying to heal him. I pushed the skin back into place," He winced, "and the wound closed. Then..." he trailed off. Looking as though he were trying to decide how best to phrase what came next.

 "What?" the Godaime asked even though she wasn't sure she wanted to know.

 Sasuke looked at Sakura and Hinata. Sakura found her voice. "Some kind of energy came from his body and we were all thrown back from the force of it."

 Tsunade frowned in thought. "Chakra?"

 "No. At least...I don't think so. Chakra has color...this didn't," Sakura finished.

 "Hmm," was Tsunade's only reply. Suddenly her attention was drawn to the Uchiha mark on Naruto's arm. Her eyes widened in recognition.

 Sasuke saw where Tsunade was looking and suddenly wished he could be somewhere else.

 "I haven't seen an Uchiha bonding seal in over thirty years," Tsunade said as she continued to stare at the mark in wonder.

 Sakura looked at the mark in confusion. "What is it Tsunade-Sama?"

 Tsunade smiled. "I think that's something Sasuke should tell you," she said warmly.

 Sakura turned to Sasuke. "Sasuke?"

 Sasuke sighed. "It marks him as my...brother," he replied with an unreadable expression on his face.

 Sakura's eyes went wide as she stared at Sasuke, dumbfounded.

 A slight smile crossed Sasuke's eyes. "Hmpf." He looked at Naruto. Sunlight, coming through the window, fell on the blonde's face and wind ruffled his hair.  _"My true brother."_

 

* * *

 It was the third day since they had come home. Hinata sat on a small, soft armchair next to Naruto's bed. She stared at the boy's sleeping face.  _"Please, Naruto-kun. Wake up."_

 Tsunade, who had been about to come into the room, instead smiled at the concerned look on the young Hyuuga's face and quietly shut the door again.

 Hinata heard a small groan and looked up to see Naruto's face contorting as though he were starting to regain consciousness. She stood up quickly, banging her knee on the bedside table. "Ow," she said weakly as she bent over to rub her injury.

 "Hinata-chan?"

 Hinata looked up. Naruto's eyes were open and he was staring at her, his face showing concern. "N...Naruto-kun!" she said in surprise. She then bolted out of the room leaving behind a very confused blond ninja.

 "What the...?" he began as a doctor came into the room, followed by Hinata.

 "I'm so glad to see you awake Naruto-kun," he said with a smile.

 Naruto allowed himself a slight smile. "That makes two of us."

 The doctor walked over to Naruto's bed and sat down in the chair Hinata had occupied earlier, while Hinata herself stood near the wall. "I'm Doctor Tokiha. You may call me Akito since you are so close to Tsunade-Sama," he said with a smile. He looked at his chart and cocked an eyebrow. "You sure do heal fast.."

 Naruto was instantly more alert. He sat up so quickly his head felt like it was spinning. "What!?"  _"But..but Kyuubi's gone. Why...?"_

 "Don't worry," Akito said with a warm smile. "The Kyuubi doesn't bother me."

 Naruto's eyes went wide and he looked at Hinata in panic. Akito saw this and waved his hand dismissively. "It's alright, Naruto-kun. She knows," he said with a reassuring tone.

 If possible, Naruto's eyes went even wider. "H..how!?"

 "She had to be told why Orochimaru wanted you," Akito said matter of factly.

 Naruto looked at Hinata with a small amount of fear. Suddenly he lurched. "That means Sakura-chan knows too?!" Akito nodded. Naruto felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. He really hadn't wanted her to know.

 "They had to know that they might have been facing Kyuubi if Orochimaru's seal transfer technique had backfired."

 "Seal...transfer?" Naruto repeated in confusion.

 "Yes. According to our intelligence network, he wanted to transfer Kyuubi to himself."

 Naruto gulped.

 "Now please, hold still so I can examine you," Akito said as he put a blood pressure cuff around Naruto's arm. After a few more small tests Akito stood up. "I think you can leave tomorrow morning. Just make sure you rest today and you're all set."

 "Thanks," Naruto replied.

 Akito left the room and Hinata retook her previous seat.

 "Hinata-chan?" Naruto said as he looked over at her.

 "Y..yes?"

 "Thank you. For not being afraid," he said in a slightly choked voice.

 Hinata's expression softened. "Naruto-kun. I could n...never be afraid of you."

 Naruto looked up at Hinata. Tears had formed at the corners of his eyes, but he was smiling. He wiped his eyes. He eh hemed. "So...um...Have you been watching me at the hospital all this time?"

 "N...no. Sakura-san and Sasuke-kun have t...taken turns also. And K..Kakashi-sensei came to visit too," she said all this very fast with a slight blush on her cheeks.

 "Kakashi-sensei?! He's alright?" Naruto questioned, smiling.

 "Y..yes," Hinata replied.

 Naruto grinned. "Awesome!" he proclaimed. "Hey, Hinata-chan?"

 "Yes?" Hinata replied, her nerves calming a bit. She had found it a lot easier to talk to her long time crush since the Chuunin exam.

 "Thanks, for coming to get me."

 Hinata looked up in surprise. "How d..did you know?"

 "I know it sounds crazy, but I could hear all of you while I was asleep."

 "Oh...You're welcome. When...when I heard you had been taken, I just had to go."

 Naruto smiled. He was quiet a moment, then spoke. "So...how have you been? I haven't seen you since the Chuunin exam."

 "Much better. Thank you. An anbu healed me," Hinata replied.

 "I'm glad. I was worried about you," Naruto said warmly.

 A slight wave of pink crossed Hinata's cheeks. "Anyway. The doctor is going to tell Tsunade-Sama that you're awake."

 Naruto sighed in frustration. "I'm gonna take a walk around the halls," he said as he started to get up, "You wanna come with me?"

 "N...no, Naruto-kun!" Hinata sputtered she put her hand on Naruto's. Naruto stopped and looked down. Hinata, as though she suddenly realized their hands were touching, yanked her hand back and tented her fingers. "Please...don't get up. The..the doctor told you to rest," she said, staring at her slightly moving fingers.

 Naruto sighed and rolled his eyes slightly. "Okay," he said with a pout as he sat back down.

 Hinata let out a short, breath of a giggle.

 Naruto stopped pouting and stared at her for a moment. Hinata saw his stare and blushed.

 "Hey, Hinata-chan?"

 "Y..yes, Naruto-kun?"

 "You should smile more often," he replied with a small smile of his own.

 Hinata looked at Naruto in surprise, the thundering of her heart blocking out all other sounds. She gulped. "Th...thank you."

 Naruto smiled, then yawned. "You know what? I think I will go back to sleep for a bit." He laid down and rolled onto his side. "Night Hinata-chan."

 "Sleep well," Hinata replied. She watched him until his breathing slowed to indicate a deep sleep, then closed her own eyes.

 

* * *

 Tsunade looked up as the door to her office opened. Kakashi strolled in and took a seat in front of the Fifth's desk.

 Tsunade cocked an eyebrow. "So...am I finally going to get my report?" Kakashi had taken nearly a full 3 days to regain consciousness, visiting Naruto before he left the hospital.

 Kakashi eh hemed. "Yes, Tsunade-Sama." The jounin straightened himself. "As ordered, myself and the other five jounin created a distraction to get Orochimaru and his underlings away from where we believed Naruto to be. After almost an hour Orochimaru suddenly ran back toward the genin group. I shot up the signal flare as we ran to head him off. The kids barely made it out before we got there. As you know by now, Yuki-kun...didn't make it back," he said with regret.

 "Yes, I know," Tsunade said gently. "I'm sorry, Hatake. I know he was your friend."

 "Yes." He sighed "At least it wasn't for nothing," Kakashi said.

 "How is Naruto?" Tsunade asked, trying not to sound too eager.

 "He's still unconscious." Kakashi paused. "Is it true? Was he really cut open?"

 Tsunade closed her eyes in a pained look. "Nm."

 Kakashi's eyes narrowed dangerously and, although Tsunade couldn't see it, he also gritted his teeth in anger.

 Suddenly a chuunin with long, black-green hair burst through the door of the office. "Tsunade-Sama," she said loudly, "He's awake!" she said with a big grin.

 Tsunade smiled. "Thank you, Nabiki."

 Nabiki smiled. "Of course Tsunade-sama." She was about to leave when she said, "And, Tsunade-Sama?"

 "Yes?" Tsunade answered quizzically.

 "Girls have been bringing him flowers," she said with a wry smile. She knew telling Tsunade this would make her happy, because she knew Tsunade cared for the boy a great deal.

 Tsunade smiled. "Thank you again, Nabiki."

 "Yes," Nabiki said with a quick bow, then vanished.

 "Well, Hatake," Tsunade said as she rose from her her chair. "Let's go see that student of yours."

 

* * *

A manga version of the scene where Naruto wakes up. To see the rest of it click on the image :  
[](https://www.deviantart.com/charu-san/art/COLAD-Healing-page-2-173869350)


	4. The Gift

     Naruto yawned and opened his blue eyes, which opened even wider at the site that met them. There were no less than seven flower arrangements sitting in various spots on and around his nightstand. He pushed back the covers and looked at the cards. One from Hinata, one from Sakura and five from girls in his Academy class he'd never talked to. Girls...that had ignored him.  _What the....?_ he thought. He looked up as the door to his room opened. Hinata was carting in yet  _another_  bouquet.

     Hinata peeked around the flowers she was carrying. "N..Naruto-kun," she said with a smile.

     Naruto looked at Hinata in confusion. "What's going on here?" he said, glancing at the flowers behind him.

     A flicker of irritation crossed Hinata's face.  _Why does he have to be popular all of a sudden?_  "I...I don't know." She held the flowers she had out to him. "H..here's another one."

      Naruto took the flowers and looked at the card. It was from Tsunade. He smiled and put them on the window sill. He turned around and looked at the other flower bunches again. "Why are girls sending me flowers?"

     "M...maybe if y...you read the cards?" Hinata offered.

     Naruto frowned thoughtfully and pulled the card out of the nearest vase. As he read it his eyes went wide and small smile crept up to his lips. In happy disbelief, he handed the card to Hinata and eagerly grabbed the next one.

     Hinata opened the card and silently read the words to herself.

 

_Dear Naruto-kun,_

       _I just wanted to say I'm glad you're alright and that I've kinda, um, liked you since I saw you fight in the main Chuunin Exam. I was thinking, maybe we could go on a date after you're better? Um, that's all I wanted to say. Bye._

  _Get well soon,  
_ _Hayama, Momiji_

 

     Hinata's heart sank. If all those cards were like this one then her chance to be with the boy she loved was now slim to none. She couldn't help it. Tears began to prick at her eyes.

     Naruto was about to happily hand the next card to Hinata when the look on her downcast face stopped him cold. "Hinata-chan? Are you okay?"

     Hinata shook her head slowly.

     "What's wrong?" Naruto asked, now quite concerned.

     Hinata swallowed. "It's nothing." She sucked in a hurt-sounding breath. "I have to go home," she said as she turned to leave.

     "Please tell me what's wrong. Did I do something?" Naruto asked quietly.

     Hinata stopped and turned around. Tears were now streaming down her face. "No. It's n...nothing you did."

     "What then?" Naruto asked, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

     At Naruto's touch, Hinata squeezed her eyes shut as if in pain. "Please, it's p...rivate."

     Feeling torn between wanting to help his friend and respecting her wishes, Naruto relented. "Okay. But if you wanna talk...."

     Hinata nodded and left the room. Naruto sat down on his bed. He had lost interest in his cards. His thoughts were interrupted as he heard a knock on his door. He looked up to see Kakashi and Tsunade come in.

     "Yo, Naruto," Kakashi said offhandedly.

     Naruto smiled a little. "Hey, Kakashi-sensei. Hey, Granny Tsunade," he greeted them.

     Tsunade twitched a bit when she heard Naruto's 'nickname' for her. "How're you feeling brat," she said jokingly as she placed an affectionate kiss on his forehead.

     Naruto blushed a bit. "F...fine."

     Tsunade made a low whistle. "You have quite the fan club going here," she said with a wink.

     Naruto ducked his head a bit in embarrassment. "Yeah, well two of 'em are from friends," he said as he scratched the back of his head with a grin.

     Tsunade's face became a bit more serious. "As much as I'd like it to be, this isn't only a social call," she said suddenly.

     The smile disappeared from Naruto's face. "You...want me to tell you what happened, huh?"

     "Yeah," Kakashi answered. "I'm sorry, Naruto, but we have to know," he said, even though he wasn't looking forward to hearing it.

     "I don't want to talk about it," Naruto said as he turned away.

     "Don't want to talk about what?" came Sakura's voice from the other side of the room. Sasuke and Sakura were walking towards Naruto.

     "Orochimaru," Naruto answered miserably.

     Sakura's bright smile evaporated. "Oh...do..do you mind if we stay?"

     Naruto shrugged. "Suit yourself."

     Sakura and Sasuke sat on the edge of Naruto's bed. Tsunade sat in the armchair and Kakashi leaned against the wall nearest to the group.

     After what seemed like an eternity Naruto spoke. His voice sounded hollow. "He drugged me."

     "What?" Sakura asked.

     "That's how he got me. I was out walking around near the gates. I found a scroll on the ground. When I opened it gas came out. It worked so fast. I didn't even, get the chance to...yell for the guards."

     "You idiot! How could you fall for something so obvious!?" Sasuke yelled suddenly.

     "Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said angrily.

     "We almost lost him because he was stupid!" Sasuke snapped back.

     "That's enough!" Tsunade commanded. Both genin were instantly quiet.

     "It's okay, Sakura-chan. He's right. I didn't think," Naruto said.

     Everyone simply stared at Naruto, wide-eyed.

 _This must really be hard for him,_ Sakura thought,  _if he's being this serious._

     "Orochimaru's bodyguards took me back to the building you found me in. He tried tons of weird jutsus on me, for hours. He wouldn't let me eat or sleep. Said the seal would be weaker...if I was tired. The day you found me..." he paused. His heart pounded in his chest like a hammer. "he took me into that room. He thought the seal might weaken if he...cut it," he said as he tightly gripped the bed sheets. "He put me on the table and..." Tears began to make soft sounds as they landed on the bed. "He...he didn't even knock me out..." he said as his voice cracked, sobs racking his shaking body.

     Everyone's eyes went wide with shock. Kakashi punched the wall, making a fairly large hole. Sasuke just sat where he was, his eyes filled with disbelief. "No...."

 _He...he was...awake?!_ Sakura thought in horror. Her right hand went to her mouth as tears filled her eyes. "Oh God...Oh Naruto..." she said as she pulled him into a hug. Naruto simply sank into her arms, his crying getting ever louder as he began to rock back and forth.

     Sasuke wanted to comfort his brother, but he was at a loss as to how. He wasn't the hugging type. And since Sakura seemed to be handling it well he stayed where he was, wishing...he knew what to say.

     Tsunade moved next to Naruto and Sakura and sat down. She moved her hand in small circular motions on Naruto's back. Tears rolled down her face as she spoke. "Shh, shhh, shhh. It's alright. You're safe now." Her voice hardened. "I swear, Orochimaru will pay for this."

 

* * *

 

     Later that day, Tsunade checked Naruto out of the hospital and escorted him home. She stayed with him the entire day. When he announced he wanted to go to bed she told him she would keep watch for the night. Once he was asleep she quietly shut the door to his bedroom. She and Kakashi moved to Naruto's couch and sat down. She nodded to herself. "I've decided, Hataki."

     "Decided what, Hokage-Sama?"

      "I'm going to ask Naruto to move in with Shizune and myself. I'm going to adopt him," she said with determination.

     Kakashi cocked an eyebrow in surprise. "What brought this on?"

     "I want him where I can make sure he's safe. And also," she said as she glanced around Naruto's apartment, "I can't stand to see him living alone. He deserves better," she said with a frown.

     Kakashi smiled with his eyes. "I'm sure you'll make a wonderful mother for him. I had actually considered doing the same thing at one point. But I just know I'd make a terrible father," he said as he chuckled.

     Tsunade laughed just as a wave of energy blasted through the room, knocking them both over. As soon as she could move she made a beeline for Naruto's room. "Come on, Hatake! This must be what Sakura was talking about!"

     Kakashi ran after her and another energy wave hit them. He was knocked to the floor, but Tsunade managed to push against it. Shielding her eyes from the force of the energy with her arms she moved forward.

 

* * *

 

     All of Konoha was in chaos. People who had run outside to see what was going on, were now trying to get back inside to get away from the energy waves.

     "Sakura!" Sasuke yelled as he fell into step next to her. They were running at top speed toward Naruto's apartment.

     Sakura's face was hard with determination. "Hurry, Sasuke-kun! It's Naruto!"

     "I know!" Sasuke replied, just as he noticed another wave headed for them. "Sakura! Hold on!" he said as locked wrists with her. From top speed they were reduced to barely jogging as they fought to stay on their feet.

 _It's getting stronger as we get closer!_  Sakura thought as the wave passed and they picked up speed again. She looked behind her and noticed several jounins and a few anbu following them.

     Sasuke noticed Sakura looking backward and did the same. "They probably know where we're headed!" he said as they continued toward their destination.

 

* * *

 

     Tsunade opened Naruto's door and her face was instantly etched in amazement. Shockwave after shockwave of energy made it so she had to grip the door frame so tightly that she was making indents in the wood. Naruto's body was surrounded by a yellow light.  _"Is that...chakra?"_  she thought.

     Suddenly Naruto's eyes snapped open as he let out a blood-curdling scream.

     "Naruto!" she yelled as she watched his body writhe in agony.

     "AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" Naruto screamed again.  _This pain. It's just like when Kyuubi put his claw through me!_

     Suddenly, everything stopped as suddenly as it had begun. Naruto went limp. He was covered with sweat and breathing hard.

     Tsunade cautiously approached the bed. "Naruto?" she said as she sat down next to him. She reached down and grabbed his hand.

     "G...Granny Tsunade..." Naruto began as he squeezed her hand.

     "Shhhh. Sleep now," Tsunade said as she ran her hand over his forehead and damp hair. "Something must be wrong with Kyuubi. I'll talk to the village elders after I leave here."

     "It's not...Kyuubi," Naruto said weakly.

     "What? How do you know?" Tsunade asked, confused.

     "He's dead."

     "What!?"

     "He..used up too much energy when he healed me. He's gone."

     "Then, what in the seven hells....?" Tsunade remarked.

     "He...he said he...gave me a going away present," Naruto answered in between breaths.

     "Going away present?" Tsunade's eyes went wide.  _"Could that damn fox have...?"_  She looked backward at the door as an extremely disheveled Kakashi wandered in. "Hatake, go get Hyuuga, Hinata. I need her eyes," she said as a crashing sound came from the front door.

     Tsunade and Kakashi bolted towards the door to find Sasuke, Sakura and several of the higher ranked ninjas standing there, looking ready for battle. Tsunade stepped forward. "It's alright now. You may go back to your posts."

     "What was that, Tsunade-Sama," asked Nabiki as Kakashi disappeared to get Hinata.

     "It was Naruto. I will explain everything in the morning. For now, please just go tell everyone that things are under control," Tsunade said in a no-nonsense tone of voice.

     Everyone except Sasuke and Sakura made an affirmative noise, bowed and disappeared. Tsunade waved the genin through. "Come on you two. He's resting," she said as she led the way.

     Sakura and Sasuke stood in front of Naruto's bed. He had fallen asleep. "What happened, Tsunade-Sama?" Sasuke asked.

     "Truthfully? I have a theory, but I need Hinata before I can confirm it. The one thing I do know for sure, is that Kyuubi is dead."

     "Dead?!" Sakura repeated in surprise.

     "Nm. Naruto told me himself. Kyuubi used too much power trying to heal him," Tsunade explained.

     Kakashi and Hinata came through the door just then. "We're here," Kakashi said.

     "That was fast," Tsunade remarked.

     "She was already on her way here," Kakashi answered.

     "Good. Hinata-chan. I want you to use your Byakugan to look inside Naruto," Tsunade said.

     Hinata's eyes went wide and she blushed. "C...couldn't you ask Neji nii-san?"

     "No," Tsunade answered steadily. "You. Neji and his team are on a mission right now."

     "B...but....." Hinata began.

     "I need this taken care of now, Hinata," Tsunade said gently.

     Hinata nodded and gulped.  _I won't be seeing anything. I won't be seeing anything. It's just his chakra._  she thought to calm herself. "Byakugan!" Veins became more defined around her eyes as she began her 'examination'. After a moment she pulled back, confusion spread across her face.

    "Well?" Tsunade prodded.

     "I don't understand Hokage-Sama. H..his chakra...it's yellow," Hinata replied.

     "I thought so," Tsunade said as she stood up. She quickly recapped to Kakashi about Kyuubi's fate. After that she said, "Naruto said Kyuubi gave him a 'gift'. I had my suspicions, but I needed the eyes of a Hyuuga. The only thing, other than having a demon sealed inside him, that could have changed his chakra color like this is an infusion of chakra from another person...a dying person."

     Kakashi's face instantly showed an expression of shock and understanding. "So you're saying...."

     Tsunade nodded. "Yes. Kyuubi gave Naruto...his chakra."

 

.........TO BE CONTINUED

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tee hee. Aren't I just Eeeeeevil leaving you there?


	5. Changes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please review. I love reviews! Thanks!

 

* * *

      Naruto opened his eyes the next morning to find Tsunade sleeping, sitting up, next to his bed. He smiled. He stood up and tapped the Fifth Hokage on the shoulder. "Hey, Granny Tsunade."

      Tsunade opened her eyes. "Morning, kiddo. How are you feeling?" she asked as she stretched her arms above her head.

      "Better." He paused for a moment. "Hey, Granny?"

      Tsunade twitched. "Naruto? Would you please stop calling me that!" she said in exasperation.

      Naruto simply laughed and scratched the back of his head in an impish manner.

      Tsunade sighed in defeat. "What did you want to ask me?" she said as she got up and worked the kinks out of her joints.

      Naruto's face became more serious. "What's happening to me?"

      Tsunade looked thoughtful. "Come sit down," she said as she walked toward the couch.

      Naruto followed and took a seat across from Tsunade on his slightly beat up, puffy armchair.

      "What you told me about Kyuubi last night got me thinking. So, after you fell asleep I had Hinata take a look at your chakra."

      For reasons he was unsure of, this made Naruto uncomfortable. He didn't want anyone looking at his insides, much less a girl.

      "Your chakra has changed Naruto," Tsunade said as leaned forward, she interlaced her fingers and rested her chin on them

      "Changed?"

      "Nm. It's now yellow. And the reason for that is that the 'gift' Kyuubi gave you, was his chakra. And what happened last night was the result of the two chakras merging."

      Naruto's eyes went wide. "Will it happen again?" he asked with a bit of fear in his voice.

      "I don't think so. I think last night was the completion of the process," Tsunade answered reassuringly.

      Naruto visibly relaxed.  _"Thank God,"_  he thought. Suddenly, understanding dawned on the blonde's face. "Does...does that mean," A smile began to work it's way across his face, "that I'll have that power all the time now?"

      Tsunade nodded with a smile. "Yes."

      Naruto jumped up from the armchair and punched the air. "YES!"

      Tsunade blinked, startled for a moment, then laughed.

      "YES! YES! YA-HAAAAAAAA!" he whooped loudly, jumping over and over again.

      Tsunade took a break from her laughter and stood up. "Naruto," she said as she placed a firm hand on his shoulder, "Naruto, Calm down. There's still more we have to discuss," she said with a warm smile.

      Naruto resumed his former seating arrangement, still grinning like a Cheshire cat.

      Tsunade eh hemed. "Now, this also means that you need to do some heavy training for a few weeks," Naruto happily nodded, "under my supervision." At Naruto's sudden, kill-joy frown she added, "So that we know what to expect with your new chakra."

      "I've controlled it just fine before," Naruto grumbled, his arms folded across his chest.

      "Using someone else's chakra while they are still alive to help you control it and having their chakra merged with your own are two entirely different things, Naruto," Tsunade said firmly.

      "Alright," Naruto said reluctantly.

      "And during this training period you will be staying at my estate," Tsunade added.

      "WHAT!" Naruto yelled incredulously.

      "I thought you might react that way. But it's an order as your superior, so go and pack your things," Tsunade replied in an authoritative tone.

      Naruto made a low, irritated growl as he stood to go to his room. After a few very noisy minutes, mostly due to the fact that the room was an absolute disaster area after the events of the previous evening, he reappeared with an insanely full backpack. "Ready," he grumbled under his breath.

      "Look at it this way," Tsunade said as they headed for the door, "You get a chance to see how a Hokage lives," she said with a wink.

      Naruto brightened a bit and the two walked out the door into the warm, morning sunshine.

* * *

  
      Naruto just stood there, his mouth hanging open. He could have easily been mistaken for a statue as he gaped at the massive building that was Tsunade's home.

      Tsunade watched Naruto with a bemused smile.  _If he likes this, wait till he sees the indoor hot spring,_  she thought to herself. Truthfully, she could have just gone with him to the training grounds every day. He didn't  _have_  to live with her. She was hoping that being at her home for a few weeks might make him more susceptible to the idea of staying there permanently.

      "Naruto," Tsunade called. "Naruto!" Naruto shook his head rapidly and looked at the fifth. "Let's go," she said as she headed for the front entrance. Naruto hiked up his backpack and followed her.

      They walked through the gardens that covered a large portion of the front yard. A few higher level ninjas, who were walking around carrying various reports, stopped for a moment to greet Tsunade. She said hello and took a look at some papers they wanted her to sign. Naruto just stood there, not saying anything. He was naturally a bit cautious of the Konoha adults at first. Always suspicious of their inner thoughts.

      "Hello, Naruto," said a female chuunin brightly, while awaiting her turn to talk to Tsunade.

      Naruto looked at the girl speaking to him. He decided she seemed genuinely nice. "Hi," he said with a smile.

      "I'm Nabiki. Nice to finally meet you."

      "What do you mean?"

      "Tsunade-sama's told me so much about you, that I feel like I know you already," Nabiki said with a grin.

      Naruto smiled. He loved the fact that Tsunade seemed to care about him like family. He used to be able to count the number of people who cared about him on one finger (Namely Iruka-sensei), but now they just seemed to keep on coming. Sakura, Sasuke, Kakashi, Hinata, Shizune, Jiraiya, Lee...so many people. They cared for him, accepted him. He had never imagined before a year and a half ago that it was possible.

      "I practically live here so you'll be seeing me a lot," Nabiki said as the jounin who had been speaking to Tsunade left. "Oh! My turn. I'll talk to you later," she said with a smile.

      Just then Shizune came walking down the stone path. "Ah, Shizune," Tsunade greeted. "It'll be a few minutes before I'm done here. Would you mind showing Naruto to his room?"

      Shizune bowed warmly. "Of course, Tsunade-Sama." She turned to Naruto. "Follow me please," she requested with a smile.

      As Naruto walked through the large front entrance of the house he couldn't help but think,  _I can't wait till this is mine._

      Shizune led Naruto through the main foyer, down a long hallway lined with doors and up a flight of stairs, finally ending up at a door that had the kanji for 'Naruto' on it. The foxy ninja was confused. "Hey, Shizune-san?"

      "Yes, Naruto?" Shizune replied as she put her hand on the doorknob.

      "Why's my name on the door? I'm only staying for two weeks," Naruto questioned.

      Shizune froze for a second.  _I have to come up with an excuse...fast!_ she thought. She smiled brightly. "Tsunade-Sama just wanted you to feel at home."

      Naruto smiled and followed Shizune as she walked into the room. For the second time that day, he lost his ability to do anything, but stare. The room was at least twenty by twenty-five feet in diameter with a nine-foot ceiling. There was a bed twice the size of his at the end of the room to his left. The sheets and pillowcases were a burnt orange color, just a little darker than his jacket. The bedspread was dark blue with a yellow Konoha symbol in the center. An area rug that matched the bedspread lay in the center of the room. A small stereo was on the far right wall, next to the doors for an enormous walk-in closet. There was also a T.V with a video game system near the stereo. A phone and an alarm clock sat on a cedar nightstand next to the bed. A large dresser was nestled in the space between the two windows and plain, square mirror hung above that.

      Naruto blinked away his trance-like state, walked further into the room and set his bag down on the bed. "Wow," he said softly.

      Shizune smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

      Naruto snapped to life. "Like it!" He ran over to the stereo and pointed at it. "I have a stereo! And a Playtendo!" he finished as he jabbed a finger in the direction of the game system. He then turned around, ran in the other direction, executed an aerial flip and landed perfectly in the middle of the bed. "And the best freaking bed EVER!"

      Shizune laughed. "I'll leave you to get settled," she said, still giggling in amusement. She walked to the door and opened it. She turned her head back to Naruto (Who was now sprawled on the bed, looking, for all the world, like road kill). "If you need anything just pick up the phone, dial five six four and I'll be right up."

      Naruto nodded. "Thanks, Shizune-san."

      Shizune smiled. "My pleasure," she replied. "I'll see you later," she said as she walked out the door.

      "Bye," Naruto replied. As soon as the door was shut he closed his eyes in comfort.  _I could get used to this,_ he thought with a smile.

* * *

  
      Sakura began to run toward Naruto in slow motion. "Naruto-kuuuuuuun!"

      "Sakura-chan!" he yelled back with his arms stretched out for the impending romantic hug. When Sakura got to him though, instead of hugging him, she began poking him in the arm.

      "Naruto...Naruto wake up," Sakura said. The scene blurred, then Shizune's face focused into view. "Naruto! We're going to be late!"

      "Uhnnnn. Shizune-san?" Naruto said as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. He frowned. "You ruined a great dream," he grumbled.

      "If it involved that Sakura girl, I don't want to know," Shizune said with a wave of her hand.

      Naruto did a double take. "How'd you know?"

      Shizune giggled a bit. "You talk in your sleep."

      Naruto turned tomato red, suddenly wishing the earth would open up and swallow him.

      "Anyway, you need to get up. Tsunade wants us in the practice field in fifteen minutes," Shizune remarked, attempting to get back to her reason for waking up the blonde ninja.

      Naruto groaned and looked at the clock.  _Six-fifteen in the morning? Damn. She's as bad as Kakashi-sensei_  he thought groggily. He rolled out of bed and shuffled over to his closet.

      Shizune, seemingly satisfied that she wouldn't have to wake him up again, walked back to the door. "I'll be waiting for you by the front gate," she announced.

      Naruto simply nodded and pulled out his usual outfit.

* * *

  
      "Good morning Naruto," Tsunade said as she saw he and Shizune coming onto the field.

      "Morning, Granny," Naruto said with a yawn.

      :Twitch: "Eh hem." She waved a hand around in a circular motion. "Welcome to my personal training ground."

      Once Naruto's eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight that had assaulted them after leaving the protective shade of the trees, he grinned at his surroundings.  _Now this is kick...ass._

      The field had to have been at least a good three acres. A nasty looking obstacle course took up nearly a third of it. In the middle was a small lake for practicing water-related jutsus, which also had jump poles in a small section of one end. There were various throwing targets and dummies scattered around the third of the field closest to him. A tiny wooded area to his right had a sign up that read:  ** _Trap evasion course. Enter at own risk_**

      "Okay. First thing we are going to do..." Tsunade began.

      "The obstacle course!" Naruto interrupted, practically drooling at the sight of it.

      Tsunade 'Eh hemmed' loudly. " _First_ thing we are going to do is to have you mold some chakra."

      Naruto looked absolutely crestfallen. "Why?" he complained.

      Tsunade simply cocked an eyebrow at him.

      Naruto sighed and was about to do as asked, when he got an idea.  _"She wants me to mold chakra, eh? I'll show her some chakra,"_  he thought with a mischievous grin. He put his hands into his favorite seal.

      Tsunade's eyes went wide. "NARUTO! WAIT!"

      "KAGE BUSHIN NO JUTSU!" Instantly the entire first acre of the field was filled with Narutos, all pushing and scrambling to get out from under one another. This included the trap evasion course, which set off every single trap...all at once.

      "GET DOWN!" Tsunade shouted as a hail of poison-tipped spikes shot out of the woods, barely missing everyone and taking out most of the replications in the process. After the danger was past, she stood and glared at her temporary student.

      Naruto desperately wanted to be somewhere else. "I..." he began.

      " _That..._  is why," Tsunade growled as she stood to her full height. She took a deep breath to regain her composure. "Now...just mold some chakra," she said in a mildly dangerous tone.

      Naruto gulped. "Y, yeah." Making a basic molding seal, he pushed out just enough chakra to give himself a yellow glow.

      Tsunade nodded in approval. "Alright, now a little more. Keep going until you feel yourself losing control, then stop," the Fifth Hokage instructed. She then turned to Shizune. "Shizune, you may want to step back a bit."

      The memory of what had happened with the Kage Bunshin still fresh in her mind, Shizune didn't hesitate to move back by a good fifty feet.

      Naruto's 'glow' had taken on the likeness of a bonfire as it continued to grow in size.  _"Keep control. Keep control,"_  he chanted in his mind.

      Tsunade watched with a thoughtful gaze as the chakra aura towered over it's owner by nearly six feet.  _"I think two weeks may not be enough,"_  she thought warily. Suddenly, the chakra flattened down to the ground, shooting sideways as a ring of energy, pushing rocks and dirt toward Tsunade and Shizune with frightening speed. Tsunade managed to jump to a branch in the tree next to her, but Shizune was pummeled to the ground just before a fist-sized rock hit her in the head. "SHIZUNE!" Tsunade screamed. Tsunade immediately jumped down to her friend's side, her eyes wild with fear.

      "SHIT!" Naruto yelled as he ran over to the two women, regret and fear flooding his features. "Shizune-san!" he yelled as he skidded to a halt next to them. He watched Tsunade treat her friend, a lump rising in his throat. "Is she gonna be alright!" he asked in a choked voice as tears filled his eyes. No answer. "Granny Tsunade!" he yelled.

      Tsunade sighed with relief. "Yes. Amazingly, it's just a concussion and some mild lacerations."

      "Tsunade-sama...I..." Naruto began.

      Tsunade held up a hand. "We'll talk later. Right now I want to get her to my infirmary," she said as she cradled Shizune in her arms and stood to leave.

      Naruto nodded and followed the Hokage back through the trees.

* * *

  
      A doctor stood at the end of Shizune's bed with a clipboard. "I have all the information I need. I'll take care of her." She looked in the direction of an open door. "You go take care of him," she said, referring to the boy slumped on the bench in the hallway.

      Tsunade made a slight half-smile, half-frown, then went to see Naruto. "She'll be alright," she said as she sat down next to him.

      "Yeah," Naruto replied with a monotone voice.

      "Naruto, look at me," she said as she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. Naruto looked up, but his expression was empty. It hurt to see his usual, carefree grin replaced by such a ghastly hollowness, but she smiled reassuringly anyway. "It was an accident. I know exactly what you're thinking and you're wrong. I'm not going to stop caring about you over this. And I know Shizune will tell you the same when she wakes up."

      A small amount of life came back to the young boy's eyes. "Really?"

      A warm smile found its' way to the Hokage's face. "Yes." She put two fingers under Naruto's necklace, lifting the stone up a little. "I have considered you family ever since I gave you this necklace and I  _never_  abandon family because of an honest mistake."

      Naruto wiped away the tears that had started to form and smiled. "Thank you, Old Lady Tsunade," he said as he gave her a big hug.

      The doctor came out of Shizune's room. "She's awake." She turned to Naruto. "She wants to talk to you," she said with a smile.

      Looking a little nervous, Naruto stood and followed the doctor into the room. "Sh...Shizune-san?"

      "Naruto...I'm okay," Shizune said with a weak smile.

      "I'm sorry..." Naruto began.

      "Naruto, it's alright. You didn't mean it." Shizune winced as her headache spiked a bit. She put her hand to her forehead. "Although, I hope you don't mind if I don't go to your next training session," she said with a small laugh.

      Naruto allowed himself a slight chuckle as he wiped away some fresh tears. He sniffed. "No problem."

      Shizune yawned. "I think I'm going to take a nap."

      Tsunade smiled and ruffled her friend's hair. "Glad you're okay. Sleep tight."

      Shizune looked slightly annoyed. "Tsunade-Sama!" she scolded. "I am too old for that kind of treatment."

      Tsunade simply chuckled and waved goodbye as she walked away.

      "Bye, Shinzune-san!" Naruto said as he fell in step behind the Fifth.

      Shizune just smiled.  _Good luck,_  she thought.

...TO BE CONTINUED

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that chapter was...eventful. LOL. Hope you guys like it. :) More soon!


	6. Determination

An hour after leaving Shizune's room Naruto and Tsunade stood in the training field once again. "Whenever you're ready," Tsunade said as she climbed into the tree next to her so she could watch from a safer vantage point. 

Naruto nodded. "Yeah." The chakra glowed around him again. It reached the same height as before, only this time it stayed stable for a little longer before Naruto stopped. A very small pulse escaped his body, but nothing Tsunade needed to worry about. 

Tsunade smiled. "Much better.... Again!" 

 

* * *

 

Sakura sat on the front steps of her home. She was lost in thought. Sasuke had warmed up to her considerably since Naruto brought him back to the Leaf, but he still wouldn't respond to her advances.  _"What if he never accepts me?"_  she thought in despair. She put her head in her arms in sadness. 

"Sakura-san?" said a familiar male voice. 

Sakura looked up to see Rock Lee looking down at her with a concerned face. "Hi, Lee-kun." 

"Are you okay?" 

"Nothing you can help with," Sakura said as she wiped away the tears she hadn't realized were there. 

Lee frowned. He knew exactly what was bothering her.  _"Damn you, Sasuke. Why must you make my goddess cry?"_  He suddenly felt the need to do at least  _something_. He put a firm, yet loving, hand on Sakura's shoulder. "Sakura-san. Wait here. I'll be right back!" he said as he disappeared. 

Sakura stared at the spot he had previously occupied in confusion.  _"What the....?"_  

 

* * *

 

Lee jumped from rooftop to rooftop, looking for his quarry.  _"Even if this hurts me, I must help her."_  he thought with determination. 

 

* * *

 

Sasuke kicked the tree for the fiftieth time. Each time his inspiration for the kick alternated between Orochimaru and Itachi's faces. The tree was beginning to groan under the strain as the base became thinner and thinner with each kick. Suddenly, there was a green blur and his kick was stopped in mid-air. 

"Uchiha Sasuke. I must speak with you," Lee said with a glare as he dropped Sasuke's foot. 

Sasuke glared back. Not because Lee was glaring, but because his training was interrupted. "What is it, Rock? I don't have time for this." 

"It's about Sakura-san." 

Sasuke sighed and lowered his head. "Fine...talk." 

"Do you know she loves you?" Lee asked. 

"Of course I do. And she told me as much before I left," Sasuke said as he sat down with his back against the tree. 

"Why do you push her away then? Do you understand how lucky you are to have such a wonderful girl want you?" Lee lowered his eyes. "I only wish I was that lucky," he said sadly.

 Sasuke sighed in frustration. "You want the truth? I don't want anyone right now. Until I kill Itachi, a relationship just wouldn't be worth it, because I don't care if I die fighting him. And besides that...I could never see her that way. She's just a good friend. But if I tell her that, it will kill her."

 "She needs to know the truth," Lee said firmly.

 Sasuke shook his head. "I think right now it's best if she thinks she still has a chance with me, until she finds someone else. It's less painful that way."

 "So...you don't mind if I pursue her then?" Lee asked carefully.

 Sasuke smirked ruefully. "Do as you like."

 A bush behind the two boys rustled. Just as they looked behind them a splash of pink disappeared through the trees. They looked at each other. "Sakura..." they said in unison before running off after her.

 "Sakura! " Sasuke called.

 "Sakura-san! Stop!" Lee yelled.  _"Damn it. She's already got four second head start! Which way did she go?"_  he thought as he turned his head in different directions, looking for her.

 Sakura ignored the stinging of the whip-like branches as they made red marks across her face. She couldn't think. She just had to get away.

 "Sakura-san, please!" Lee yelled with desperation while fumbled with his leg warmers as he ran, trying to get them off so he could remove his weights.

 Sakura could hear nothing but the pounding of the blood in her veins.  _"Stupid. I'm so STUPID!"_  she screamed inside her mind.

 Lee got sick of wasting time. He took out his kunai and sliced off both his legwarmers and his weights, cutting his bodysuit and scratching his skin in the process.

 Sasuke had to shield his eyes from the dirt and debris that Lee kicked up as he ran at top speed.  _"Good luck, Lee,"_  Sasuke thought as he halted his pursuit.

 Sakura's head start had only delayed the inevitable. Lee saw her to his right.  _"There!"_  he thought. He caught up to her and grabbed her wrist.

 "LET ME GO!" Sakura screamed at the black-haired ninja.

 "Sakura! Please, calm down!" Lee begged as he grabbed the other wrist to keep her from flailing her arms.

 "Leave me alone!" the pink haired kunoichi raged.

 "Please!" Lee said as he lowered his gaze. "I don't want you to hurt yourself!"

 Sakura stopped struggling immediately. "Lee-kun...I would never hurt myself," Sakura said firmly.

 Lee sighed in relief and released Sakura's wrists. "Thank goodness."

 "I'm glad you care about me so much...but I just want to be alone right now," Sakura said in a choked voice.

 Lee blew out a frustrated puff of air from his nose. "Alright. But, if you need someone to talk to...."

 Sakura nodded and Lee left.  _"Thank you...Lee-kun"_  

 

* * *

 

The last bit of chakra dissipated, this time leaving no shockwave. Tsunade jumped down from her perch in the tree. "Excellent, Naruto!" she said, clapping her hands in approval.

 Naruto's face broke out into a foxy grin. "Thanks, Granny Tsunade."

 Tsunade ignored the jibe at her age. She had gotten used to it in the week Naruto had been there. And, she had noticed, that he said it less often now that it didn't bother her as much. "I think you're finally ready to start on the obstacle course," she said with an approving smile.

 Naruto's eyes instantly lit up. He looked positively insane with glee. "Really?!"

 "Really," Tsunade replied.

 Naruto clenched both his fists in front of his face in excitement. "Yes!" he said with a grin.

 Tsunade's face became serious. "Don't get carried away. This course was not designed for gennin. If you don't take it seriously, you will wind up back in the hospital."

 Naruto grimaced, but his foxy grin returned quickly. "Don't worry about me Granny! I can handle it!" he said with confidence.

 Tsunade folded her arms and smiled. "We'll see." She walked over to the course. Naruto followed, barely able to stop himself from running ahead. She stopped in front of a wooden platform raised ten feet off the ground. "This is the starting point," she barely got out before Naruto jumped up onto the platform. She eh hemmed. "Please pay attention, Naruto."

 Naruto nodded fervently as his eyes darted all about, taking in the different aspects of the course. "Just tell me when I can start."

 Tsunade rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Alright. First we have your basic zipline," she said, waving a hand toward the long, inclined rope in front of her student.

 Naruto looked dejected. "A zipline?! I used those in the academy!"

 Tsunade smiled. "Yes. But did the ziplines in the academy do this?"she said as she pulled a lever in front of her. Suddenly, the ground under the zipline came alive with extremely wide logs moving in a piston-like fashion, threatening to pound the life out of whoever tried to pass them.

 Naruto grinned. "Now that's more like it!" he said as he cracked his knuckles.

 "Now, I'm not going to show you everything on the course in advance so you will need to be suspicious of everything. Don't let your guard down. Even if you think the course is over," Tsunade said warningly.

 "I got it," Naruto said with a nod.

 Tsunade raised her arm. "Ready.....BEGIN!" she said as she brought her arm down in a cutting motion.

 Naruto took a running leap and grabbed onto the zipline's handle. Tsunade pulled the lever and the logs began to jut upwards. As he was moving he realized, to his horror, that the logs didn't stop at a low enough height to allow him to pull his body over them. A log came up under him and the force of it shot him into the air like an undignified sack of potatoes.

 Tsunade rushed under the falling boy and caught him. She set him down. "Are you alright?" she asked.

 "ALRIGHT?!" Naruto yelled indignantly. "What the hell is that?!" he said as he pointed toward the zipline.

 Tsunade cocked an amused eyebrow. "A zipline?"

 Naruto was extremely irritated. "There's no way in hell to get past those things!" he raged.

 "You have to find a way. Be creative," Tsunade said, ignoring Naruto's rant. Naruto made an indignant growl. She grinned. "Are you going to give up?"

 "Hell no!" Naruto said confidently.

 Tsunade smiled. "Alright then." She pointed to a picnic table twenty three feet away that had a book laying on it. "I'll be over here if you need me," she said as she walked to the table.

 As soon as Tsunade's back was turned Naruto's grin disappeared and he glared at his new found foe. "Alright," he said as he jumped up on the platform. He stared at the zipline for a moment.  _"Dammit. She's just as sadistic as Ero-sennin!,"_  he thought in irritation. He jumped up and started down the zipline, only to come to the same end as before. "DAMMIT!" he yelled in frustration and pain.

 As Tsunade read her book a maid brought her a glass of juice. She heard Naruto cursing the zipline and laughed. She then noticed the glass that had been set down in front of her and frowned. "Yamiko," she said to the maid. "I asked for sake."

 Yamiko bowed. "I'm sorry, Tsunade-sama. Shizune-san told me to bring you juice instead."

 Tsunade tensed in annoyance. She curled her right hand into a fist. "That interfering little...."

 Yamiko knew where this was going. "Excuse me, Tsunade-sama. I have other duties to attend to," she said as she bowed and hurried away.

 Naruto tried dodging to the side, but the logs were so big around that it was useless. Finally, he sat on the platform, gasping for breath.  _"Damn it. How the hell do I....?"_  Suddenly, Naruto stood up. He stared at the zipline for a second more then nodded in affirmation. He brought his hands together into a chakra molding seal. His hands began to glow. He looked at them and smiled. "Alright!"

 Naruto jumped onto the zipline. As the dizzying speed brought him close to the first log he used the chakra to stop the handle's movement. Once the log went down he began moving again. He continued this all the way down the line until he jumped triumphantly onto the end platform. He began jumping up and down, punching the air. "WHOOOOOOOO! YA HAAAAAAA!"

 Tsunade heard Naruto's yelling and looked up. As soon she saw him jumping around on the platform she grinned. She knew exactly how he had beat it. She stood and walked over to the hyperactive Gennin. "I knew you could do it, brat," she said with a grin as she reached him.

 Naruto flipped off the platform and landed perfectly in front of the Fifth. "What's next?!" he said excitedly.

 Tsunade grimaced. "Home," she said with a yawn.

 Naruto looked completely deflated. "But...."

 "Naruto. You passed a pretty tough chakra control test. I think that's enough for today. Besides," She looked to the sky, "It's getting too dark to see what you're doing." She put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "I'm proud of you, Naruto"

 Naruto smiled widely. "Thanks, Granny."

 "When are you going to stop calling me that?" Tsunade asked with a frown.

 Naruto simply grinned evilly at Tsunade. She sighed and began to walk toward the house. Naruto followed.

 As they walked Naruto looked back at the training field.  _"I can't wait till tomorrow!"_

.........TO BE CONTINUED

 

* * *

 


	7. Obstacles

 

 

When Naruto opened his eyes, for the third time, the first thing he noticed was that it was still dark outside. He grumbled to himself.  _"Dammit. I can't get back to sleep,"_  he thought in frustration. Tsunade had made him go to bed early so they could train before she went to work.  _Why the hell isn't she up yet?_  he thought irritably.

Naruto got up, threw on his usual outfit and trudged out the door to find Tsunade's room. He figured she would be on the top floor. As far as security went, it made the most sense. Three flights of stairs later he found himself at the end of a hallway that had three doors. Two, were along the sides. The third was at the end.  _That's gotta be it, h_ e thought.

As Naruto began to walk down the hall he started to get the feeling he was being watched. A few spots on the walls became the focus of his attention.  _Guards hidden in the walls huh? I just hope they know I'm a guest and not an enemy._

Almost as if they heard his thoughts camouflage sheets made to match the walls of the hallway dropped from the bodies of three jounin, including a certain spiky-haired sensei. "Yo, Naruto," Kakashi said with a smile in his eyes.

Naruto smiled. "Hey, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi walked over to his former student. "Naruto, if you're thinking of waking up the Fifth, then you need to go back downstairs. She'll kill you," he said nonchalantly.

Naruto turned to Kakashi with a defiant gleam in his eye. "She told me to be up this early and  _she's_  still in bed!" He said loudly. "And besides," he continued just as loudly, "She doesn't scare me!"

The guards all simultaneously sucked in a breath as their eyes widened. As they took a step back Naruto slowly turned around to see Tsunade standing behind him, hair bedraggled, cracking her knuckles.

"Naruto," Tsunade said in a low voice. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Naruto sucked in a breath through his teeth and backed up a few steps.

Tsunade put on a dangerously fake sweet smile. "You know it's four in the morning...right?"

A vein popped on Naruto's forehead. "YOU made me go to bed at nine o'clock! Because YOU wanted me to train early before you went to work!"

Tsunade's expression quickly changed to one of confusion. She put a finger sideways to her mouth as though she were trying to recall her words. "I...did?" she said with a yawn.

Naruto's expression instantly became incredulous. "YOU DON'T REMEMBER!"

Tsunade was not phased in the slightest. She scratched her right arm absentmindedly. "No," she said as she yawned again. "Just go back to bed," she said as she turned to go back to her room.

"Go back to bed! How the hell do you expect me to sleep!"

"Count sheep," Tsunade replied as she walked into her room and shut the door.

Naruto stood there, seething for a moment before turning around and trudging down the stairs. When he got to the bottom he looked in the direction of the front door.  _"Fine then. I'll train by myself,"_  he thought. He left the house and was swallowed up by the darkness of the moonless night.

 

* * *

Naruto stood on the platform for the zip line. He took a deep breath and stared at it for a moment. If the first obstacle had been so hard, what was the rest of it like? He knew it was dangerous to be at the course by himself, but he was so angry that he didn't care.

He took a running jump and lept for the zip line handle.

 

* * *

Tsunade groaned and sat up.  _Damn brat,_  she thought in irritation.  _Now **I**  can't sleep! _she thought as she kicked off the covers. She got up and staggered out of the room. "Kakashi."

A camouflage blanket dropped from the wall. "Yes, Tsunade-sama."

"Go wake up that brat. If he wants to work out, I'll give him the workout of a lifetime," she said with an evil smile.

"Hai," Kakashi said as he bowed and vanished.

 

* * *

Naruto hopped off the end of the zipline and looked around to see where he needed to go next. The sun was starting to come up, so he didn't have to squint like he did when he had first come onto the field. He spotted a tiny red arrow.  _"There."_

He jumped from the platform in the direction the arrow indicated. After a few seconds, Naruto wondered if he was supposed to have flipped another lever because nothing was happening. Suddenly, two giant logs came from both sides, threatening to flatten him in the middle. He jumped out of the way just in time to see some blunted kunai shooting toward him. "Ahhhhh!" He took out his own kunai and deflected as many as he could, but four out of the ten hit him. Two on his right shoulder, one on his ribcage and the other hit his left hip.

Naruto winced in pain from the kunai hitting him. Even though they were blunt, they still hurt like hell. Naruto shot forward, turning in the direction the next arrow pointed.

 

* * *

Tsunade came out of her room, pulling on her green Haori. Suddenly, Kakashi appeared in front of her, without Naruto. "Where is he?" she asked.

Kakashi bowed as he made his report. "He wasn't in his room."

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Kakashi's expression was somewhat grave. "He's nowhere in the house. Godaime-sama, I know Naruto, and I think it's very possible that he went down to the training grounds by himself."

Tsunade's eyes widened. "What!" In an instant, she was gone in a puff of smoke.

Kakashi sighed.  _"Naruto. You idiot."_

 

* * *

Naruto followed the next arrow into the trees. He dodged a spiked drop net. As he came to the next tree the branch he landed on exploded. Naruto dropped about twenty feet before he felt arms under his body.  _"What?"_  he thought. As soon as he realized it was Tsunade, he was angry.

Tsunade landed and put down a furious Naruto. "Just what the hell do you think you're doing, Brat!" Naruto fumed but remained silent. "Do you have any idea how STUPID that was!"

"I can take care of myself!" Naruto shot back.

" _Kakashi_  almost got killed running this course!"

Naruto's eyes went wide, then he gritted his teeth and looked up at Tsunade. "That doesn't mean it'll kill me!"

Tsunade's expression softened a bit. She turned away from the blonde haired genin. "Come back to the house," she said in a commanding voice as she began walking.

"I can do this!" Naruto yelled.

Tsunade stopped mid-step. "I know you can, Naruto," she said in a soft tone of voice.

"Huh?" Naruto had been expecting her to snap back at him again.

Tsunade sniffed and hurriedly wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She turned back to Naruto. "But not without me here in case something goes wrong." She sighed heavily. "I don't want you to get killed."

Naruto, noticing that her eyelashes were wet, looked at the Hokage in confusion.  _Was she...crying?_

Tsunade closed her eyes for a moment in thought. When she opened them again she nodded her head in decision. "Alright, Naruto. But let's get something to eat first." She said with a small smile.

Naruto's face brightened considerably. "Okay."

Both Ninjas turned and jumped into the trees toward the house. Tsunade was glad, as they lept from branch to branch, that Naruto could not see the relieved tears that were carried away on the wind.

 

* * *

"Seconds!" Naruto said as he held up his bowl.

The maid who was serving breakfast glared at Naruto as she took the bowl from his hand. Tsunade noticed but didn't say anything.

As Naruto started downing his fourth bowl of breakfast ramen Tsunade stood up. "Excuse me, Naruto. I need to speak with Izumi for a moment," she said with a hard stare at the now nervous maid. Tsunade motioned for Izumi to follow her as she left the room.

Tsunade led Izumi into a room a few doors down the hallway. She didn't want Naruto to hear the conversation that was about to take place. She shut the door and turned sharply toward Izumi, who was now looking like a cornered mouse. "If I  _ **ever**_  see you look at Naruto that way again, you will no longer be employed at this house!"

"Yes, Tsunade-sama," Izumi answered. She was silent for a moment before speaking again in a voice that was strong, yet respectful. "But...I don't understand. Why? It's just Kyuubi," she said, sounding genuinely confused. The instant she finished, she knew she shouldn't have said it. Even before the loud slap that came across her face.

"He is a human boy and I don't  _ever_  want to hear you suggest otherwise!" Tsunade snapped.

"He killed my sister!" Izumi cried as she cradled her sore cheek.

"Naruto is NOT Kyuubi! Kyuubi was sealed  _inside_  him!  _Naruto_  was keeping you and everyone you care about safe!"

"I...I didn't know," Izumi answered. "Wait a minute. Was? What do you mean he  _was_  keeping us safe?"

Tsunade flinched. She'd forgotten that she hadn't told everyone about that yet. "Kyuubi is dead."

"It is??" Izumi said in shock.

"Yes, but that doesn't change the fact that Naruto has never been a danger to you," Tsunade said in a low voice.

"Yes, Tsunade-sama. I apologize," Izumi said as she made a low bow.

Tsunade, seemingly satisfied with this, nodded. "Return to your duties."

Izumi bowed again. "Yes," she replied before walking out the door.

 

* * *

Naruto stood the beginning of the course, eagerly awaiting Tsunade's signal. Suddenly, she appeared next to the platform.

"Everything is reset. Are you ready?" Tsunade reported.

"Yeah."

Tsunade pulled the lever. "Go!"

Naruto was off like a shot. He reached the end of the zipline, dodged the two swinging logs, deflected most of the blunt kunai, dodged the drop net and then made sure to use ninja wire to carry himself over the exploding branch. Seeing another arrow down and to his right he dove in that direction.

Tsunade followed the flash of orange that was Naruto by running along the ground through designated 'safe zones'.  _"He's gotten faster,"_  she thought as Naruto sped through a fearsome looking gauntlet of fire traps.

 _Shit, that was close. Old Lady Tsunade wasn't kidding. This is one hell of a course._ Naruto thought as he dodged the last of the walls of fire only to find himself heading right for a large net. "Crap!" He pulled out a kunai and sliced through it. About a second later he landed on a branch only to have it break out from under him, dropping him ten feet to the ground.

He got up and looked for the next arrow. He spotted it about five feet in front of him. He didn't take more than two steps before he noticed a trip wire on the ground. He was about to go over it when he remembered the triple wire trap that he had tripped when he and the others had gone after Sasuke. He decided to jump over it. A small land mine exploded under his feet knocking him down. He got up and started running again. More mines exploded as he pushed forward. He dodged them easily now that he knew to look for them.

Naruto saw an arrow pointing to the trees and headed up. The branch he landed on was connected to another tree about fifty feet away by a thin log. He shrugged and began to run across the log only to discover very quickly that it was not as stable as it appeared. It rolled to the side, nearly dropping him sixty two feet to the forest floor. He managed to use chakra to hang on, but when he tried to climb back to the top the log simply rolled him back to square one. Naruto dipped his head backwards and looked at the other side.  _"Okay,"_  he thought, nodding his head in decision. He carefully got to his feet. Once he was sure he had a solid grip he began to run along the underside of the log using chakra. When he reached the end he flipped down to a branch a few feet away. He looked around for the next arrow. He found it quickly and began moving again.

Naruto followed an arrow down to ground level. In front of him was a large pond with several, small platforms on posts about a foot out of the water.  _"She's kidding, right? I can just run across this,"_  he thought with a smirk. Naruto collected chakra to his feet and ran onto the pond. No more than four steps into his run he noticed something moving in the water. He barely managed to miss being pulled under by very large alligator. He immediately jumped up onto one of the platforms.  _Is she insane! I can't believe she had that thing in there!_ he thought as he jumped his way to the other side of the pond.

Tsunade smiled.  _Very good,_ she thought happily. She looked ahead of his current position and frowned.  _I wonder how he'll do on that one?_

The next arrow led back into the trees again. Naruto was getting tired. He never thought the course would be so long. He made a jump to the next branch. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a large, metal ball on a chain swinging towards him. "Shit!" he yelled as he jumped up to the top of the ball and leapt for the branch ahead of him. Another ball came from the other side of him, but as he jumped to avoid that one a third ball came from a higher position. Naruto couldn't dodge the new ball in time. "AAAGGH!" he cried out in pain as it smashed into his body. He was sent flying toward a huge wall of spikes.  _"You've got to be kidding me!"_

Naruto tucked himself into a protective ball, even though he knew it wouldn't do him any good, and prepared for the oncoming pain.

...TO BE CONTINUED


	8. Ramen and a Walk

 

No sooner had Naruto curled into a ball than he thought of a plan, uncurled and put his hands into his favorite seal (A/N-This all happened in the space of about three seconds) "KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" A perfect copy of Naruto formed in front of him. He pushed off the clone, made a backward flip and landed safely on a large branch.

Tsunade just stared in shock. She had been so sure that she was going to have to rescue the boy.  _Kakashi would be so pissed if he found out Naruto passed that one,_  she thought with a smirk.

Naruto jumped up to the next branch to continue when he heard a shrill whistle from below. He turned to see Tsunade moving her hand in a 'come here' gesture.

"That's enough for now, Naruto!" Tsunade yelled.

"But I'm not tired!"

"I know that! But I need to get to work!"

Naruto half sighed, half growled in defeat before jumping down from his perch in the tree.

Tsunade smiled. "You did well, brat. I'm proud of you," she remarked, ruffling the boy's hair.

Naruto shook his head to remove the offending hand. Tsunade laughed. "Let's go, Naruto."

Naruto smiled and followed the Fifth back to the house.

* * *

"Just remember to stay away from the course while I'm gone," Tsunade said as she grabbed a few books from her desk at the house.

"I know," Naruto said with a bit of irritation. He didn't like being babied.

Tsunade was about to go out the door when she turned her head back to look at Naruto. "Oh, and I have something I want to talk to you about when I get home," she said with a smile.

Naruto cocked an eyebrow. "Okay."

Tsunade turned back to the door and made a half wave. "Later."

Naruto decided to explore the house a bit. He hadn't had much time to look around since he was almost always at the training field. After walking through a couple of rooms he found a long, glass hallway filled with plants. There was a cobblestone path leading down the center of it. He stepped into the hall.  _This feels great!_ He noted the steam around him.  _It's so warm in here._

At the end of the hall was a door with a sign on it that read: 'Hot spring'. Naruto's eyes widened in delight. When he saw the 'in use' sign his expression changed to one of disappointment.  _"It could be a guy in there though,_  he thought. He pushed the door open just a crack. "Is anyone in here!" he asked. No answer. "HELLO!" he shouted. He looked at the sign again.  _Maybe someone left the sign on the wrong side?_

Naruto pushed the door open the rest of the way and walked in. He had difficulty seeing the hot spring due to the steam and stepped right off the edge into the hot water. "AHHHHH!" he yelled at the temperature of the water. He heard another scream that was not his own and decidedly female. He squinted in the steam to see Nabiki backed up against the side of the spring, holding a towel up around her important features. "AH! Nabiki-chan. F...forgive me!" he said as he waved his hands frantically in the air in front of his face. "This isn't what it looks like, I swear!" he sputtered. He covered his eyes and waited to be slapped.

Nabiki calmly removed the headphones that had kept her from hearing Naruto earlier. "Naruto-kun? Didn't you see the sign on the door," she asked with a frown.

Naruto cautiously straightened himself. "Y...Yeah. But no one said anything when I ask if anyone was in here."

Nabiki winced. "It's my fault then. I was listening to some music. Guess I had it up too loud, huh?" she said with a half laugh.

Naruto blinked. "You're...not gonna hit me?"

Nabiki looked at him strangely. "Why would I? It was an honest mistake?"

_Naruto raised his eyebrows. If it had been Sakura she would've decked me for sure._

"Um, Naruto-kun?"

"Yeah?"

"You can go now," Nabiki said with a 'You've worn out your welcome' look.

Naruto stood and got out of the water immediately. "Y... yeah. Eh heh. Bye!" he said quickly just before bolting out of the room.

Nabiki laughed.  _Too bad he's four years younger than me,_ she lamented,  _He's pretty cute._ With that, she sunk back into the relaxing water.

* * *

Tsunade spread out the previous day's reports in front of her on the desk. She sighed.  _Might as well get started,_  she thought just before she heard a knock at the door. "Yes?"

Genma poked his head in. "Tsunade-sama. The head elder wishes to speak with you."

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow in interest. "Oh?" She straightened herself and eh hemmed. "Show her in then." The head elder walked in and Genma left the two women alone. "So—What do I owe the honor of this visit?"

The elder (A/N-I'm pretty sure they've never mentioned her name.) pulled a small envelope from the obi of her kimono. "The third left instructions to give this to the new Hokage once they had settled into their duties. I believe the time has come," she finished as she handed the envelope to Tsunade.

Tsunade turned over the rather plain looking envelope a few times. "What's it about?"

"I do not know. I was told the contents were for your eyes only," the elder replied.

"I see. Thank you, Elder," Tsunade said with a respectful nod.

The Elder nodded in kind and left the room.

Tsunade sighed. "Might as well open it," she said as she loosened the metal fastener on the envelope. She unfolded the one-page letter and began to read. After a short moment, her eyes went wide. "This...this is—My God. How could he have kept something like this from him?"

* * *

Naruto aimlessly wandered around the streets of Konoha, looking for something to do. He suddenly noticed Hinata wandering around in circles, staring intently at the ground. "Hinata?" he said, walking over to her.

Hinata jumped a little at hearing her name called by her favorite voice in the world. She looked up. "N...Naruto-kun."

"What's up?"

Hinata's cheeks took on a slight pink tinge. "I...I was going to buy some g...groceries. B...but, I dropped my money. I th...think it's around here somewhere," she said, looking around a bit.

Naruto smiled. "Want me to help you find it?"

Hinata waved her hands in the air. "N…no. I couldn't ask y...you to go to the trouble..." she said quickly, looking down as she finished.

"Bah! It's no trouble at all," Naruto said with a grin. "What kind of friend would I be if I didn't help?"

"Th..thank you, Naruto-kun."

The two teens began looking around for Hinata's money. Not long into their search, Naruto spotted what looked like a small billfold underneath the outside display of Ino's family shop. "Hinata, is that it?" he asked pointing to what he had found.

Hinata smiled. "Yes, it is!" She picked up the billfold and quickly checked for missing bills. Satisfied that the money was all there she turned to Naruto. "Th...thank you so much, Naruto-kun!"

Naruto grinned. "No problem!"

Hinata suddenly felt bold. "N...Naruto-kun? I would like to t...treat you to ramen as a reward."

Naruto's eyes lit up instantly. "For real!"

"Y...yes," Hinata replied with an embarrassed smile.

"Ya HAA! Let's go Hinata!" He grabbed Hinata's hand, not realizing the gesture would turn the poor girl into pudding.

"N...Naruto-kun," Hinata said quietly. Seeing that Naruto hadn't heard her she decided to just enjoy the feeling of holding his hand; even if he didn't mean anything romantic by it.

* * *

Naruto finished off his bowl of ramen. "Thanks a lot, Hinata!" he said with that foxy grin of his.

Hinata blushed a little. "You're welcome, Naruto-kun. W...would you like another bowl?"

"Really?! You're the best Hinata!" Naruto said just before he ordered his second bowl.

Naruto grabbed his chopsticks and started eating. He gulped down his current bite and looked at the young Hyuuga. "Hey, Hinata. I just noticed today. You're stuttering less lately," he said with a smile.

This turned Hinata bright red. "Th...thank you, Naruto-kun."

Naruto smiled and went back to eating.

Hinata just watched him eat.  _Why can't I say anything to him? Why? Why won't my voice work?_

Naruto finished his bowl and noticed Hinata staring at him. For no reason he could think of, this made him blush a bit. "Hinata?"

Hinata shook her head to banish her current train of thought. "Y..yes."

"You okay?"

"Yeah."

Naruto frowned at the short answer. "You want me to walk you home?"

Hinata's eyes went wide. "S...sure," she said, managing a smile.

Naruto smiled and hopped off his stool. "Let's go."

Hinata nodded and followed him.

* * *

As they walked Hinata kept trying to think of something to say.  _You're alone with him._ _ **Say**_ _something!_ she mentally chided herself. Just as she was about to open her mouth a girl appeared in front of Naruto. She was Naruto's age. She was wearing a basic pair of denim shorts and a t-shirt with a whale on the front. Her brown hair was worn in two puffy pigtails.

"Hi, Naruto-kun," said the blushing girl.

Naruto looked a bit startled that this girl was talking to him, much less using 'kun' with his name. Then he remembered her letter from his hospital stay. "Momiji?"

Momiji began to shuffle her right foot. "Did...did you like the flowers?"

"Yeah. They were nice," Naruto replied with a small smile.

 _Don't panic. Don't panic. They're just talking,_ Hinata chanted in her mind.

"Can I ask you a question, Momiji?" Naruto said suddenly.

Momiji looked up. "Yes," she said with a smile.

"You hated the fact that I was even alive when we were at the Academy. What changed?" Naruto said with a mix of sadness and confusion.

Momiji's eyes went wide and she quickly looked down. She felt sick to her stomach.  _That's right..._  ((Momiji yelling at Naruto))  _...I always made fun of him..._  ((Momiji shoving Naruto aside to get to Sasuke)) "I...I'm sorry. I didn't know you then."

"You still don't," Naruto said plainly.

Momiji swallowed. "I..."

"You just like me cause I beat Neji in the Chuunin Exam," Naruto continued.

Momiji's eyes began to water. "I..."

"I'm sorry, Momiji," Naruto said, a touch of sympathy entering his voice. "I won't be your new Sasuke."

At this Momiji burst into tears and ran.

Naruto was in shock. He'd never seen a girl act like this toward him. On the one hand, he was flattered, on the other he hated the fact that her attentions were only for his fighting skill. He watched the shattered girl run and suddenly realized he'd been a little mean. He hadn't meant to. It just...happened. "Dammit," he swore under his breath.

Naruto sat Hinata down on a nearby bench. "I'm sorry, Hinata. But can you wait here? I'll be right back."

Hinata frowned but nodded her head in agreement.

* * *

Momiji was surprised when Naruto appeared in front of her. "Naruto-kun?" she said in a choked voice.

Naruto looked down for a second before raising his head and speaking. "I'm sorry. I went too far," he said regretfully. Then he smiled. "Wanna start over?"

Momiji smiled. "Yes!"

"I can't date you though," Naruto said quickly before the girl got her hopes up too high.

Momiji's face fell. "You like someone else?"

Naruto smiled apologetically. "Yeah."

"Oh..." Momiji said as her eyes misted over once again.

"I have to get back to Hinata. I'll see you later," Naruto said gently.

Momiji sighed and nodded her head in defeat.  _So...he likes Hinata..._  she thought as the object of her affections ran off.

* * *

Hinata looked up when she sensed Naruto coming. "Did everything g...go alright?"

"Yeah. I let her down a little more gently this time," Naruto said with a slight grimace. "Ready to go?"

Hinata nodded happily and stood. The two resumed their walk to the Hyuuga estate.

* * *

As they came within sight of the house Hinata began to feel a little sad that their walk was drawing to a close. She stopped mid-step, causing Naruto to bump into her.

"Hinata?" Naruto questioned.

Hinata turned around, realized their faces were uncomfortably close and took a step back. She tented her fingers and blushed a bit. "Naruto-kun? D-do you h-have anyone that you l...like?"

A bit of pink touched Naruto's cheeks and he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Um...Y...Yeah. I kinda like Sakura-chan."

Hinata's face fell. "Oh..."

A look of confusion came to the blonde's face, which quickly turned to one of wide-eyed realization. "Hinata? Do you...like me?"

Hinata's eyes widened in fear of being found out. "Th-There's m-my h-h-house. I h-have t-to g-go!" she said as she ran to the house.

"Hinata!" Naruto called after her. He wanted to follow her, but he was still in shock; and as such, his legs refused to move.  _Hinata...likes me?"_  he thought in confusion. All the times he had talked to her came rushing back to his thoughts. The way her stuttering got worse whenever she spoke to him. The way she always seemed nervous and blushed when she was around him. It suddenly all hit him like a ton of bricks. "Hinata...likes me..."

Naruto stood in stunned silence for a few moments, then turned around and started walking towards home. Uzumaki Naruto had a lot to think about...

...TO BE CONTINUED

* * *

Man, this chapter had a mind of its own. The ideas just kept coming.

Hope this keeps the NaruHina fans happy for a while. But I prefer to take relationships like these slowly. I always find it ridiculous when Naruto goes from being friends with Hinata to saying he loves her in the space of two paragraphs. It's not realistic. Sides, when things are dragged out a bit it makes the moment when they do come together much more satisfying—at least, to me. :)


	9. Questions

Three hours after she had received it, Tsunade read the letter in front of her for the fifteenth time. And every time she did, it made her feel sick inside. She sat down on the couch and let out a sigh.  _I wish I knew what the hell to do,_ she thought. She was suddenly brought out of her reverie by a loud voice.

"Granny Tsunade!" Naruto yelled cheerfully as he bounded into Tsunade's living room.

Tsunade's eyes widened as she quickly put the letter under the stack of books on the coffee table in front of her.

"It's five o'clock!"

Tsunade glanced at the clock on the far wall. "So it is." She stood and walked over to the Chuunin guard standing next to the doorway. "Shikamaru. I'm taking Naruto down to the training field. Let me know if I'm needed."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama."

Naruto waved to the boy as he walked out the door. "Later, Shikamaru!"

"Yeah," Shikamaru answered with a small smile

* * *

Naruto lept to the top of the first metal ball and then to the top of each one after that. After landing on the platform on the other side he shot downward, grinning as he saw a large, cement circle on the ground with the symbol of the Leaf painted on it in red.

He pushed off the branch he was on, made a flip in the air and landed on the Leaf symbol in triumph...just before the entire circle fell inward, dropping him into a very deep pit with sharp spikes at the bottom. "AHHHHHHH!" he yelled.

He twisted his body so he was facing downward, bit his finger and made the seals for frog summoning. "KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!" There was a puff of smoke, followed by an ear-shattering explosion of dirt and cement. When the smoke cleared Gama Bunta sat in the middle of a huge crater, looking very irritated.

Tsunade's eyes were wide with shock. She remembered the tiny frog he had summoned when they battled Orochimaru. Of course, she had had no idea that Naruto had summoned Gama Bunta before.  _How in the Seven Hells did he summon **him**??_

Gama Bunta rolled an annoyed eye up towards the thirteen-year-old boy on his head. "Hey, Brat! I don't like being summoned in the middle of a fall!"

A vein popped on Naruto's head. "I'm your subordinate aren't I!" he yelled indignantly.

Tsunade's eyes re-widened. "Naruto is his  _subordinate_! When did this happen!" She suddenly decided she didn't like not being part of the conversation. "OY! GAMA BUNTA!"

The giant frog turned his head toward the voice that had just called to him. "Hmm?" He gave her a wry smile when he saw Tsunade. "Tsunade, you're loud as usual."

Tsunade's eyebrow twitched, but she smiled. "When did Naruto become your subordinate?"

Gama Bunta cocked an eye ridge. "About eight months ago."

A confused look crossed the face of the Fifth Hokage.  _Then why couldn't Naruto summon him back then?  s_ he thought, thinking of the battle with Orochimaru. She looked up at Naruto. "You overdid it, Brat!"

Naruto flashed a foxy grin and made several jumps before landing on the ground in front of Tsunade. "I did it though!" he said happily; obviously proud of himself.

Tsunade smiled warmly. "Yes, you did. Good job, Brat," she said as she ruffled Naruto's hair.

Gama Bunta eh hemmed. "Since you don't seem to need me anymore, I'll be going now," he said as he stretched and cracked what little neck he had to one side. "Later," he said as he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Tsunade turned to Naruto. "Well then. Let's go back to the house," she said.

"Yeah," Naruto replied as he looked at the sky.

Tsunade cocked her head to one side. "Naruto? Are you okay?"

Naruto blinked back his thoughts. "Yeah. Just thinking."

"About?"

Naruto turned his gaze back to the sky. "It's kind of embarrassing."

"What? Did a girl ask you out?" Tsunade quipped.

Naruto made an odd sound and flinched.

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow. "I see."

"Well...not exactly asked me out. But she said something that made me realize she likes me," Naruto replied as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Who is it?" Tsunade asked, genuinely interested.

Naruto was suddenly defensive. "Hmpf. Like I'd tell you. You'd just make fun of me," he said as he stuck out his tongue.

"It's Hinata, isn't it?" Tsunade said with a self-satisfied smirk.

Naruto nearly bit the tongue that was still sticking out. "H...how did you...?

Tsunade started laughing. "Brat. I swear you are the only one who  _didn't_  know she likes you!"

Naruto simply looked down and grunted in irritation at having been laughed at for not having common knowledge.

Tsunade cocked her head to one side thoughtfully. "So?"

"So...what?" Naruto asked as he looked at Tsunade in question.

"So what are you going to do about this?"

Naruto looked away again. "I don't know. I guess I'll just hafta tell her I like Sakura-chan."

Tsunade frowned. "Naruto. Does Sakura like you that way? Even a little bit?"

Naruto looked crestfallen. "No..."

"So why not give someone who  _does_  like you a chance?"

Naruto crossed his arms and twisted his face in thought.

"I'm not saying ask her out, but you could spend more time with her and see what happens," Tsunade said with a warm smile as she placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Hmm," was Naruto's only reply.

"You don't have to decide now, Brat. Anyway, come over here and sit with me. I need to talk to you about something," Tsunade said, gesturing to the picnic table.

Naruto shrugged and sat down. They sat there in silence for a full minute before Tsunade spoke. "Naruto. I've been thinking about your situation a lot lately."

"Situation?"

"Simply put...the fact that you live alone at your age bothers me," Tsunade said with a somber look on her face.

"I can take care of myself just fine!" Naruto rebutted.

"That's not what I was referring to. I meant that you have no one to be there for you when you're home. I worry that you're lonely."

Naruto shrugged. "Eh. Maybe a little. But it's not like it's a new thing, ya know?"

The casual way Naruto spoke about loneliness made Tsunade feel like she'd been punched in the stomach. "I was wondering if you would like to change that," she said carefully.

Naruto looked at her strangely. "Huh?"

Tsunade let out a long breath. "Would you consider staying at my home permanently?"

"What?" Naruto said in confusion.

"I'd like to adopt you..." Tsunade said with hope in her voice.

Naruto, for his part, froze in place. These were words that he had never expected to hear in his lifetime. (("I'd like to adopt you..." "I'd like to adopt you...")) They echoed in his mind for what seemed like an eternity before he spoke. "I don't need to be pitied," he said sadly.

"It's not pity!" Tsunade replied, raising her voice a bit as she used her hands to raise herself up by pushing on the top of the table. She let out a sigh and sat down heavily. "It's not pity. You're like a younger brother to me. I care about you like family. That's why I want to adopt you. You don't have to decide now, but I want you to know that even though I'd legally be your mother I wouldn't treat you like a baby. You'd have pretty much the same life you did before...just more people to share it with," she finished with a smile.

Naruto considered this for a moment. "I'll think about it," he said, a barely noticeable smile tugging at one corner of his mouth.

Tsunade smiled warmly. "Good. Let's head back to the house."

Naruto nodded and followed the Fifth Hokage through the dense trees.

* * *

When Izumi reached the dining room Naruto was just finishing his ramen and was about to ask for seconds.

Naruto noticed she looked distracted. "Hey."

Izumi turned toward Naruto. "Yes?"

"Are you okay?" Naruto asked.

Izumi made a half-hearted smile. "Yes, I'm fine."

"Okay," Naruto replied as he went back to eating.

Izumi watched the boy sitting at the table. She'd had a lot of time in the past few days to think about how she had acted toward him. She had always considered herself to be a kind person and knowing that she had willingly made an innocent boy feel so badly make her sick inside. It was time to set things right, even if it wasn't easy for her. "Naruto?" Izumi said.

Naruto looked up at the woman, his cheeks stuffed full of ramen. "Mrah? (Meaning 'yeah')"

Izumi grimaced at having seen some of Naruto's ramen as he spoke with his mouth full. She cleared her throat. "I...wanted to apologize."

Naruto swallowed. "Huh?"

Izumi looked as though she were trying to find the right words. "I...I was...mean to you. I...thought you were the Kyuubi. I...I'm sorry," she said as though the words were hard to get out.

Naruto simply stared at Izumi, confused. None of the adults had  _ever_  apologized to him before. "Th...thank you," Naruto said, his eyes becoming misty.

"Maybe we could start over?"

Naruto wiped his eyes and smiled. "Yeah!"

Izumi made a small smile, turned around and went into the kitchen. Tsunade smiled warmly as she looked at Naruto.  _Someday brat. Someday **all**  of them will apologize._

* * *

The moonlight that cascaded through his window suddenly made him think of nothing, but visiting Hinata; simply for the fact that the source of that light reminded him of her eyes.  _What should I do?_

Naruto let his head fall to the side so he could see the moon better. He could have sworn he saw her face appear on it's luminescent surface. "Okay," he said decisively. "I'll go talk to her." With that, he jumped up from his bed and left for Hinata's house.

* * *

Hinata lay on her bed, thinking.  _How can I face him now that he knows?_  A knock sounded on her door. She pushed herself to a sitting position. "Yes?"

The door opened and Neji's head poked through. "Hinata-sama. Naruto is here to see you."

Hinata made a high pitched, short squeak as her eyes went wide as dinner plates. "P...please tell him I'm n...not available!"

Neji sighed and walked into the room. "Hinata-sama. Hiding from the man who is the object of your affections is not becoming for a future leader of our clan." He stood in front of her, arms crossed. "It displays cowardice. The clan will not follow someone who cannot face their fears."

Hinata made her usual tented fingers gesture. "B...but..."

Neji's expression became one of irritation as he pulled Hinata's fingers apart. "And stop doing that! It makes you look indecisive and weak!"

Hinata gulped and nodded. "Hai, Neji-Nii-san."

Neji pointed at the door. "Go," he commanded.

Hinata started to bring her fingers together, stopped herself and stood up. "Okay," she said as her face took on a determined look. She walked out the door leaving behind a very self-satisfied Neji.

 _Good luck, Hinata-sama,_  Neji thought with a smile.

* * *

Naruto kicked the pebble he'd been beating up for the last eight minutes, for the hundredth time. He heard a noise behind him and turned around to see Hinata standing just beyond the light of her open front door. He was struck by how she looked. He was so used to seeing her in that bulky jacket of hers that the sight of her in denim shorts and a t-shirt made quite an impression.  _Hinata-chan is so...cute,_  he thought before he could stop himself.  _Whoa. Where'd that come from?_  he thought as she walked up to him.

"N...Naruto-kun?" Hinata repeated.

Naruto shook his head and blinked back his thoughts. "Yeah. Sorry, Hinata-chan. I just kinda spaced out there for a minute."

Hinata smiled. "Th...that's okay. What d...did you want to talk to me about?"

Naruto eh hemmed. "You wanna go get some ramen?"

"I'd like that," Hinata said, surprised by the fact that she had just completed a sentence without stuttering while talking to Naruto.

"Great!" Naruto said as he started walking.

A few minutes into their walk Naruto spoke. "Hinata-chan. Do you remember what you said this morning?"

Suddenly the blue/black-haired Hyuuga wanted to run back to her room and dive under her bed. "Y...yes," she replied nervously. She nearly made her finger tenting gesture when a vision of Neji entered her mind. (("It makes you look indecisive and weak!")) She quickly put her hands back down at her sides.

"Well...I came to tell you that I don't feel the same way," Naruto said, his voice filled with apology.

"Oh..." Hinata said, as her eyes misted over.

"But..." Naruto continued.

Hinata looked up at Naruto with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.  _"There's a 'but'?"_

"We can hang out more. And maybe after a while, I'll change my mind," Naruto said with a smile.

Hinata smiled widely. "Really?"

"Yup. No promises though. Do you mind just being my friend for now?" Naruto asked.

Hinata's smile was bordering on a grin. "No. Th...thank you, Naruto-kun."

Naruto flashed her a foxy grin. "Now let's go get that ramen!" he said as he grabbed her hand and ran with her toward his favorite ramen stand.

* * *

Naruto slurped up the last of his ramen and paid his bill. He turned to Hinata. "I don't feel like going back to Granny Tsunade's house yet. You wanna hang out for a while?"

"Sure," Hinata answered with a smile.

They stepped out of the ramen stand and began walking down the quiet street. Hinata looked up at a large clock hanging from a building. It read nine-o-clock.  _"I hope father won't be angry with me for staying out this late,"_  she thought.

Naruto and Hinata wound up near a pond not far from the base of the Hokage monument. "Hey, Hinata!" Naruto said suddenly as they neared the water's edge. "You know how to skip rocks?"

"Uh uh," Hinata replied, shaking her head.

Naruto began scanning the ground for an appropriate rock. He found two of what he was looking for and handed one of them to Hinata. "Just curl your wrist and then flick it like...this!" he said as he made the rock jump over the surface of the water eight times. "See? Not much harder than throwing shuriken."

"That was great, Naruto-kun!" Hinata said in admiration.

Naruto grinned. "Try it."

Hinata squinted her eyes in determination. She threw the rock. It skipped twice. "I did it!" she said excitedly.

Naruto was taken by surprise at this sudden outburst from the normally quiet girl. "Nice, Hinata!" When she turned to smile at him this time he was surprised when his heart skipped a beat.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata questioned, noticing the stunned look on the boy's face.

"Nothing," he desperately tried to think of something to change the subject. "So...are things with Neji any better?" he asked as he sat down on the ground.

Hinata joined Naruto. "Yeah. He's b...been much nicer to me since the Chuunin exam. How about you? I h...heard you have been staying at Tsunade-sama's house."

"Yeah. You wanna hear something crazy?" Naruto asked.

"Okay," Hinata replied, sounding unsure of Naruto's question.

"She wants to adopt me..." Naruto said in a slightly more serious voice.

"Naruto-kun, that's wonderful!" She saw Naruto's serious face and her enthusiasm melted. "It's n...not wonderful?" she asked in confusion.

Naruto let out a long sigh. "I don't know. I mean, I like my apartment. It's nice to know she cares about me, but..."

"Naruto-kun...I th...think you should tell her yes. I would be s...so happy to know that you aren't living alone anymore. I h...hate seeing you go home and not have anyone to welcome you," Hinata said with some sadness.

Naruto looked at the ground. "I guess that'd be nice." After a moment of silence, he spoke again. "Thanks, Hinata-chan," he said as he turned his face up to look at her.

The combination of Naruto's warm smile, the moonlight making his face glow and the beauty of the setting around them made Hinata nearly dizzy as her heart pounded in her chest. "N...no p...p...problem," Hinata answered, blushing a furious bright red. She suddenly made a small gasp. "Naruto-kun. What time is it!"

Naruto pulled back his sleeve to reveal a watch. "Aw, don't worry. It's only ten thirty."

"What!" Hinata yelped. "I'm s...sorry! I have to go! Father will be angry!"

"Okay," Naruto said as they both got up. "See you tomorrow?"

"Mm!" Hinata said just before she turned and ran in the direction of her house.

Naruto watched her go, hair bouncing as she ran. He realized he'd been staring and turned his gaze back towards the water. Now he was more confused about his feelings than ever.


	10. Fear of the Truth

He picked up his forehead protector and tied it on. Once he was happy with the reflection he saw in the mirror he headed downstairs for breakfast. About two rooms away from Naruto's destination his pace slowed a bit.  _She's gonna be waiting for an answer,_  he thought with dread. He sat down on a bench in the hallway and sighed heavily.

"Not sure of what you're going to tell Tsunade-sama yet, huh?"

Naruto looked up at Shizune. "No," he said dejectedly.

Shizune smiled and sat down next to Naruto. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. Whatever you decide, she'll respect that."

"I know," Naruto replied, scratching the poison ivy rash on the back of his left hand. "I just don't wanna hurt her feelings."

"Do you know how much you look like her brother; how much you act like him?" Naruto shook his head. "You even have the same dream. He wanted to be Hokage too before..." Tears began to prick at the corners of her eyes and she took a moment to compose herself. "For her, having you here is almost like having her brother back."

"So I'm his replacement..." Naruto said with a frown.

"No! She cares about  _you_ , Naruto. But, it's because you remind her so much of Nawaki that she's terrified of you dying like he did."

Naruto's face showed his shock. "She's...afraid of me dying?"

"Very much, Naruto-kun," Shizune answered with somewhat worried expression.

Naruto looked down. "Thank you, Shizune nee-san. I know what to do now."

Shizune looked surprised. "You do?"

"Uhn," Naruto replied.

"Okay then. I'll see you in the dining room," Shizune said as she rose and walked away.

* * *

Tsunade looked up as Naruto entered the room. Izumi was already serving Shizune a plate of pork rice balls. "Morning, Brat," Tsunade said with a smile.

Naruto sat down at the table, an oddly serious look on his face. "I've decided to go back to my apartment," he said as Izumi set a bowl of miso ramen on the table in front of him.

Shizune dropped her chopsticks and looked at Tsunade, who had a downtrodden expression. "I see. Well, if that is your decision..."

"It's not that I don't like it here. And it's not that I don't like you and Shizune nee-san. I just...don't want to be protected," Naruto said with an odd tone to his voice.

Tsunade threw on a fake "brave face". "Well, then. We'll have your things moved back after breakfast."

"Tsunade-sama?" Shizune questioned.

Tsunade noted the concerned look on her friend's face. "I'm okay, Shizune," she said with a nonchalant wave of her hand and a smile. She took the last bite of her food and stood. "I have some work to finish. Naruto, come say goodbye before you leave, okay?"

"Okay," Naruto said with a gentle expression. He watched Tsunade go with a sick feeling in his stomach. He knew he had hurt her.

"Naruto?"

The blond-haired thirteen-year-old turned to look at Shizune. "Hm?"

"Why?"

Naruto let out a sigh. "If she's always trying to keep me safe it'll get in the way of her job. Trust me, I'm doing everyone a favor."

"Naruto. It may not seem like it sometimes, but she takes her job as Hokage very seriously. Her duties wouldn't be in danger of lapse if you stayed."

"I've made up my mind," Naruto said with conviction.

"I see." She rose from her seat. "I'll get the staff to start packing your things."

Naruto stood. "It's okay. I can do it," said with a small smile. With that, he left the room.

Shizune watched him go, then turned her gaze to the door of Tsunade's home office. She walked through the short hallway and knocked on the door. "Tsunade-sama. May I come in?"

"Yeah," came the muffled reply from behind the closed door.

Shizune walked into the room to see Tsunade sitting at her desk, head and folded arms resting on it. She wasn't surprised that there were tears in the eyes of the Fifth, but she was surprised that she had been allowed to see them. "Tsunade-sama..." she began.

Tsunade sniffled and wiped her eyes. "I'm alright. I guess, I just really thought he would choose to stay."

"You never know. He could change his mind," Shizune offered.

Tsunade sighed and stood up. "No. I'm not going to push this," she said heavily. A knock sounded on the door. "Yes?"

"It's me, Tsunade...sama," came Naruto's muffled voice from behind the door.

"Come in, Naruto," Tsunade answered.

"I'm ready," Naruto answered with a somewhat downcast look. He had his backpack, which was once again packed to the gills, slung over his right shoulder.

Tsunade stood and walked over to Naruto. "Let's go then." With that, she turned and walked out of the room.

* * *

Naruto finished stuffing the last of his shirts into the dresser in his room. He looked at the digital clock on the tiny nightstand next to his bed. It read ten fifteen. It would be nearly two hours until he had to go to the meeting hall to get his mission assignments for the week. He decided to check out his newest manga. He pulled a storage box from under his bed and lifted off the cover. He took one of the manga from the top, flopped onto his bed and began to read.

It wasn't long into the manga that an odd, empty feeling began to creep up on him. Suddenly, the place he had called home for most of his life felt cold and uninviting; as if someone had sucked all the life out of the world and replaced it with an eerie silence.

He sighed, changed positions, sighed again and finally sat up. "Music. I just need some music." He turned on his very run down looking radio and tuned it to his favorite station. Rock music flooded the room and he tried to go back to his manga.

* * *

Sakura was sitting on the roof of one of the Konoha buildings, trying to think of a way to change Sasuke's mind. A flash of Lee's concerned face invaded her thoughts. She shook it away.  _Why the hell do I keep thinking of Lee-kun?_  she thought in irritation.  _I love Sasuke-kun. I will always love Sasuke-kun! Even if...even if he never loves me back...I still...I still..._  She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her head on them.  _I'm so confused,_  she thought as a tear ran down her face.

She wiped her eyes and stood. "I won't give up!" she said with a determined look on her face. Suddenly, there was someone beside her. She did the first thing she could think of against the intruder...she belted him one. Sakura watched in horror as Naruto fell off the three-story roof. "Naruto!" She yelled as she quickly dove off the roof, landing just before Naruto hit the ground and caught the unconscious boy. Both teens rolled backward over the grassy yard behind the building, skidding to a halt just in time to avoid slamming into a tree.

Sakura sighed in relief. Looking him over she decided he would be fine. "Naruto," No response, "Na..." she began when she noticed that his shirt and jacket had been pulled almost completely off when he had slid off the roof. But that wasn't what had broken her sentence. She had seen a fairly large, oddly shaped scar on the upper right portion of Naruto's chest.  _"When did he get that?"_  she wondered. As she bent down to more carefully examine the scar her eyes widened.

 

-FLASHBACK-

Sakura stared in horror at the scene before her eyes. The masked boy had jumped in front of the deadly rakiri to save Zabuza. Kakashi's fist was now through that boy's chest, sticking out of his back on the other side.

 -END FLASHBACK-

 

Sakura closed her fist and slowly put it up to the scar. She gasped when she saw that it matched the size of the scar almost perfectly. She jerked her hand away and quickly rolled her friend over. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw an exit scar on his back. "When the hell did he have a fist through his chest?" she said in a low, horrified voice.

* * *

Naruto groaned and put his hand on his head. "Uhhhnn. What the hell hit me?"

A very guilty looking Sakura walked into Naruto's field of somewhat blurry vision. "I did," she said with a grimace. Her expression changed to a frown. "But you shouldn't sneak up on me like that!" she said, pointing an accusing finger at the blonde on the couch.

Naruto simply made an annoyed sound and folded his arms. This action made him realize that he had nothing on his top half. "What the!" he said with wide eyes.

"Your stuff is in the washer. It had grass stains all over it," Sakura explained.

"Oh," Naruto replied.

Sakura sat down next to her teammate. "Hey, Naruto? Do you mind if I ask you a personal question?" Naruto shook his head. Sakura let out a short puff of air. "How did you get that scar on your chest?"

Naruto's eyes went as wide as possible. "I...I can't tell you."

"I'm your friend. You should tell me when you're seriously hurt," she admonished. Naruto remained silent. This upset Sakura. For some reason, she just  _had_  to know. "Someone punched through you...didn't they!"

Naruto gritted his teeth. "Trust me, Sakura. You don't want to know."

"Tell me!" Sakura said, raising her voice.

"NO!" Naruto yelled.

"Why won't you tell me!" Sakura asked with a panicked expression. She knew. Somehow she just  _knew_  who it was, but she was desperate for Naruto to tell her she was wrong. "TELL ME! TELL ME IT WASN'T SASUKE-KUN!" she screamed in anguish.

Naruto's eyes widened, then he squeezed them shut and looked down.

Sakura's hands flew to her face as a tear-filled gasp left her mouth. "It's a lie...IT'S A LIE...!" she yelled as she stood and backed away.

Naruto bit his lower lip. "Sakura..." he began, reaching out a hand toward his friend.

"NO!" Sakura screamed as she turned and ran out of Naruto's apartment.

"Shit!" Naruto cursed as he stood and ran after Sakura. "SAKURA-CHAN!" He called out. No answer came. He looked in every direction, but she was nowhere to be seen. "Dammit!" he swore and ran off to look for her.

* * *

By the time Sakura had stopped running her lungs felt like they were on fire.  _"It just can't be true. He...he had to've been aiming for a non-vital spot! He...he wouldn't try to kill Naruto!"_  She dropped to the forest floor and began to sob. "S...Sasuke-kuuuunn!" she wailed.

* * *

Sasuke looked up from the jutsu scroll he'd been studying. "Was that...Sakura?" He stood and walked toward the voice he'd just heard.

He found her in a small clearing, not far from where he had been. She was crying loudly. Sasuke was confused. "Sakura?" he said in a careful tone.

Sakura sucked in a breath but remained in the fetal ball she'd been in for the last five minutes. After a moment of silence, she spoke in a very small voice. "Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke took a step forward. "Yes?"

"Please...tell me it's a lie..."

"Tell you what is a lie?"

"Please...I'm begging you. Tell me you didn't try to kill Naruto," Sakura pleaded.

Sasuke's face showed his shock. "Sakura..."

Sakura got up and launched herself at Sasuke, clinging desperately to his shirt. "You weren't trying to kill him...right? He just moved to the wrong spot when you threw your...your..." her words faltered. After a moment her eyes became wide and her face wore a horrified expression. She backed away from Sasuke, staring at him in utter disbelief. The scene of Kakashi and Haku once again had flashed into her mind. "Chidori..." her words were barely audible. "You used chidori..."

"Sakura..." Sasuke began. He didn't like the look in his friend's eyes. He could tell she was going to lose it.

"How could you...?" Sakura asked, visibly shaking. "How could you DO THAT??" she screamed, feeling like the events that were unfolding must have been some insane nightmare.

Just then Naruto ran into the clearing. "Sakura-chan! Stop! Please stop!"

Suddenly, Sakura was angry. "HOW COULD YOU TWO KEEP THIS FROM ME??"

"We...we didn't want you to be hurt..." Naruto said in a guilty tone.

"DIDN'T WANT ME TO GET HURT?? What the HELL do you think is happening now??" Sakura screamed in response, gesturing wildly with her arms.

"Sakura!" Naruto said as he grabbed her shoulder. Sakura pushed his hand away.

"NO! I won't hear anymore!"

"Sakura, you need to understand..." Sasuke began, desperate to erase the look of hurt and anger in her eyes.

"Understand? UNDERSTAND WHAT?? That you," she said pointing a finger at Sasuke, "nearly became a MURDERER??"

"IT WASN'T HIS FAULT!" Naruto yelled, stunning both of his friends into silence.

"Naruto..." Sasuke said.

"It wasn't his fault. The seal made him crazy. It amplified all of his hate and he did things he never would've without it." He turned to Sasuke. "Tell her...about the mangekyo."

Sakura suddenly squeezed her eyes shut and she put her hand to her forehead. She made one small grunt of pain before slumping to the ground.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled out of concern.

Sasuke bent down and checked Sakura's pulse. "It's alright, Naruto. I think she just over did it," Sasuke said reassuringly.

"Should we take her home?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke thought for a moment. "No. It would be...awkward, talking to her about this where people will hear her yelling."

Naruto nodded with understanding.

After about seventeen minutes Sakura groaned and slowly sat up. Naruto walked over to her. "Are you okay?"

Sakura didn't say anything but numbly nodded.

"I'm sorry. I guess we thought we could pretend it never happened," Naruto said.

Sakura got shakily to her feet. "I need some time to think. Would you two mind leaving me alone for a while?" She said quietly.

"But..." Naruto began to protest.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and grabbed Naruto by the collar. "Let's go, Dobe."

"Hey!" Naruto said loudly as he tried to pull his collar from the other boy's grasp. After a minute he gave up and began walking on his own.

As she watched them go something stirred in her soul.  _I need to become stronger. So that next time...I can stop something like this from happening._

* * *

Genma was standing calmly at guard when Sakura came walking up to him. "Yes?"

Sakura had a very determined look on her face as she spoke. "I need to speak with Tsunade-sama..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (All review responses are for the previous chapter and come from the posting of this story on Fanfiction.net)
> 
> Question- how old are they? **This is six months after Sasuke went bonkers, so they're almost 14.**


	11. A Voice From the Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick flashes of memory are in double parenthesis.

He sat down on his bed, thinking. Nothing had been the same since he got home.  _It's too damn quiet,_ he grumbled in his mind. He stood and began wandering around the apartment. It seemed so...empty—Lifeless. He gritted his teeth in frustration. "GRAAAA! This is stupid! Living alone never bothered me before!" he growled as he paced around the living room. "If I'd stayed she would've treated me like a baby!" he yelled to no one. But the more he walked around, the more he felt like he was gonna crawl right out of his skin if he stayed in his old place.

Eventually, Naruto wound up in front of his wall calendar. His birthday was circled in red. He gingerly touched it as he remembered his thirteenth birthday. He had been in the middle of training with Jiraiya to learn frog summoning and so hadn't been able to have a party. He had been looking forward to it too, since he'd never celebrated with anyone. "It would be nice..." he said softly. He stood there a bit, turning in a slow circle as he surveyed the apartment. A sad realization came to him and he hung his head in defeat. "This...isn't home anymore..." he said before walking back to his room.

He rummaged around under his bed for a moment before finding what he was looking for. He pulled out his backpack and once again filled it with his belongings.  _No more. I don't want any more birthdays alone._

 

* * *

  
Naruto knew where Tsunade would be—her office. He was surprised, however, to find Sakura at the same place. "Sakura-chan?"

"Hey, Naruto," Sakura greeted.

"What are you doing here?" Naruto asked.

"I've just decided to take her on as my apprentice," Tsunade said with a smile.

"Really?!"

"Yup," Sakura said happily.

Tsunade noticed the overloaded bag on Naruto's back. "Naruto...are you...?"

Naruto smiled. "Yeah. I changed my mind. Guess I got too used to having a family," he said before his expression changed to be somewhat serious. "But you have to promise that I'll still have the same freedom I had at my apartment. No bedtimes, no keeping me from dangerous missions...any of that stuff."

Tsunade smiled. "Of course not. I know you're too independent for that."

Sakura, for her part, was confused. "What...just happened here?"

Tsunade laughed. "I'm sorry, Sakura. Of course, you didn't know. I'm adopting this brat over here," she said as she ruffled Naruto's hair.

Sakura smiled widely in delight. "Really?! Naruto, this is wonderful! Congratulations!" she exclaimed as she gave the boy a hug.

"Thanks, Sakura-chan," Naruto replied, blushing a bit. He suddenly remembered a piece of his conversation with Hinata from the other night.

_(("What do you want to do when you're older, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked._

" _I think I'd like to be a medical ninja," Hinata replied shyly.))_

"Granny Tsunade?"

Tsunade sighed. "Yes?"

"Do you think you'd have time to train two girls at once?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"Two? Who else are you thinking of?"

"Hinata-chan. She told me she wanted to be a medical-nin someday."

Tsunade sighed thoughtfully. "Hmmm. I suppose."

"YATTA!"

"But," Tsunade said, holding up a finger to tell Naruto to be quiet, "if she can't keep up with Sakura then she'll have to call it quits. I don't have the time to help her catch up."

Naruto nodded in affirmation. "Nm!"

"Alright. Now, why don't the two of you go home? I need to get back to work. Sakura, we'll start your training on Saturday. I should be done with these damn papers by then," she said, gesturing to the many large stacks of paper on her desk.

Sakura nodded. "I'll see you later, Naruto," she said as she walked out the door.

"Bye," Naruto replied. He hiked up his backpack and turned to Tsunade. "Later, Granny!"

"Think I'll ever get a 'Mom' out of you?" Tsunade said with a wry smile.

"I wouldn't count on it," Naruto laughed. With that, he walked out the door.

Tsunade sighed and shook her head, then sat down to resume her daily grind.

* * *

Naruto finished putting his belongings back in his new room and went downstairs to make some ramen. Once he got to the kitchen he started going through the pantry, trying to find the delectable noodles. Izumi walked in and made a face when she saw someone was in her domain.

"Naruto-sama?"

Naruto turned around. "Sama? I'm not a Sama."

Izumi eh hemmed. "Yes, you are. You're the son of a Hokage."

Naruto was confused. "How'd you know about that?"

Izumi smiled. "Tsunade-sama called ahead to tell the staff that you were coming back and what the situation was. She also said to tell you to," she eh hemmed again, "And I quote;  _Keep your big mouth shut about it until she makes an official announcement._ "

Naruto frowned and growled under his breath.

"And by the way, Naruto-sama—I am the cook. If you want ramen, ask me and I'll make you some. If you make your own food I won't have a job," she said with a small laugh.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Naruto asked as he scratched the end of his nose.

"Read. Tsunade-sama said there're some jutsu books in the living room that she wants you to study," Izumi answered.

Naruto's expression was one of irritation and defeat. He sighed and left the room.

* * *

Naruto stood in the center of the living room, scanning the area in search of the books he needed. The first ones his eyes came to rest on were a small pile sitting on the coffee table. "Those must be it," he said as he sat down on the couch and picked up the top book.

* * *

Tsunade had just finished signing a document when she felt the need to see Sandaime's letter again. She pulled open the drawer she kept it in and saw it wasn't in there.  _Where...?_ Suddenly her eyes widened and her heart sank into her stomach. "No..." she said in a horrified whisper, remembering how she had hastily hid the letter under the books on the table. Quickly, she dialed the number for her home.  _Please don't let me be too late,_ she thought.

* * *

Nabiki was walking past the phone in the hall when she heard it ring. She picked up the receiver. "Hello? Yes, this is Nabiki. Oh hi, Tsunade-sama." :Pause: "Naruto? No, I don't know where he is. Okay, I'll check. I'll see you when you get here. Bye."

She hung up the phone and ran toward the living room.  _She sounded so urgent. I wonder why she doesn't want him reading them,_ she thought in reference to the books Tsunade had told her to stop him from reading.

When she reached her destination she saw Naruto sitting on the couch. "Naruto-kun," she called. No answer. She walked around to the front of the couch. Naruto was holding a piece of paper and seemed frozen in place. His face wore an expression of extreme disbelief. "Naruto...kun...?"

* * *

Tsunade ran as fast as her legs would allow her.  _How could I be so stupid?!_ she thought, berating herself. Her home came into view. "Thank God the house is so close to my office. Please let me be in time!" she said as she put on an adrenaline induced burst of speed.

* * *

Tsunade burst through the living room door. "Naruto!" she yelled in desperation. She realized immediately upon seeing him that she was too late. She slowly walked up to him. "Naruto...? Naruto, say something...please," she said as her eyes misted over. She reached out a hand and put it on Naruto's shoulder. It was immediately slapped away. "Naruto..."

"How long...?" Naruto choked out, his voice shaking with rage.

"How long, what?" Tsunade questioned, softly.

"How long have you known...?" Naruto spat out, squeezing the life out of the paper in his right hand.

Tsunade closed her eyes in emotional pain. "Less than a week. Sandaime said that I could tell you when I felt you were ready to know. I...I just wasn't sure how to determine you that you were and..."

Naruto turned his eyes up to look at his adoptive mother and exploded. "WHAT RIGHT DID HE HAVE TO NOT TELL ME WHO MY GOD DAMN FATHER WAS?!"

"HE WAS AFRAID!" Tsunade snapped back.

Naruto's face twisted into a snarl and his teeth were gritted. "Afraid? Afraid of WHAT?!"

Tsunade regained a bit of her composure, but her voice was still raised. "Do you have any idea how many enemies your father had?!" Naruto continued stewing, sucking in breaths through his teeth as he tried to hold back his tears. "If everyone knew you were the son of Yondaime there would've been people trying to kill you in your crib!"

Nabiki gasped and her hand flew to her mouth.  _He's the son of the Fourth?!_

The tension in Naruto's face subsided a bit. "Why?!" he asked as his tears began to flow. "Why couldn't he at least tell me...?!" he cried. He felt he had been betrayed by at least two people who were dear to him and it hurt. His anger ebbed away as it was replaced a weary sadness.

"He was afraid you might tell someone. Either during a fight or when people made fun of you," Tsunade answered gently as she sat down on the couch next to her son. "And, since it's your dream to become Hokage yourself, Sandaime believed it was that much more important  _not_  to tell you. Please understand, Naruto. He didn't want you to be killed."

Naruto sighed, pulled his legs up to his chest and quietly rested his arms and head on them. It was then that the truth of his heritage sunk in. "I'm...the son...of a Hokage..." he said softly. After a moment excitement began to fill every fiber of his being. "I'm the son of a Hokage!" he said with a short laugh of joy.

Tsunade smiled in relief. This wasn't turning out to be the tragedy she was afraid of. "Twice over even," she remarked in reference to her adopting him.

Naruto was grinning from ear to ear. In the space of a few minutes, he went from being some random orphan to being the son of the most revered Hokage in the history of the village. He turned to Tsunade. He suddenly had a million questions. "Do you have any pictures of him? What about my Mom? What's my real last name?!" he blurted out in one breath.

Tsunade held up a hand to indicate that Naruto should calm down. "Hang on a minute. Before I tell you anything, you have to promise me that not a word of what you found out today leaves this room. And that goes for you too, Nabiki."

"Hai, Tsunade-sama," Nabiki answered.

Naruto's face fell a bit. "I can't even tell Sakura-chan and Sasuke?"

Tsunade shook her head. "Hmmmm—I suppose. Just make sure they know that it's extremely important that no one else is told." She turned to Nabiki. "Naruto and I are going to be my office for a while. Make sure no one disturbs us unless it's urgent." She smiled at Naruto. "We have some memories to discuss."

Naruto smiled broadly.

* * *

Tsunade shut the door. "Sit down," she said waving a hand toward the small couch on the east wall.

Naruto did as instructed. Tsunade walked over to her desk and unlocked the left drawer. From the drawer, she pulled a scroll and a small photo album. She sat next to Naruto on the couch and handed him the scroll.

"What's this?" Naruto asked as he turned the scroll over in his hands.

"A letter from your father," Tsunade said gently.

_A letter from my father...?_ Naruto froze. He felt like he couldn't breathe.

"Naruto?" Tsunade said, trying to break the boy out of his trance.

Naruto blinked back his thoughts. "Ah...y...yeah," he said as he gingerly began to open the scroll. He unrolled the parchment and began to read:

_Naruto,_

_If you're reading this, then the Third must believe you are finally ready. I commend you on gaining the strength of will needed to keep your lineage a secret._

_I don't have much time left. I must perform a jutsu tonight that will mean my death. I regret that you won't have a mother either._  At this point in the letter, Yondaime's writing had become a bit slurred.  _She died in battle tonight, fighting the Kyuubi._  Naruto closed his eyes as some tears leaked out. He knew his father was dead. Sandaime had told him that much. But he had always secretly hoped his mother was alive somewhere _. I'm so sorry, Naruto. I tried to keep her safe for you. But she was an anbu captain and she felt she was needed._

_You look so much like me. Your hands are so small. I wish...I wish I could hold them as you grow. Just to know I won't see you graduate from the academy or be there on your wedding day. I'd rather die a thousand times than feel this pain._

_I'm sealing the Kyuubi within you. Hopefully, its power will protect you in my place. Sandaime has convinced me that it's best if you don't know who you really are until you are able to keep it a secret. There are many people who would try to kill you if they knew you are my son. I hope you won't hate me for the pain you'll no doubt endure from the people of Konoha. Don't judge them too harshly, little one. They've been through hell today. So many deaths..._

_Please know that I love you and, even though she barely got to meet you, your mother also loved you very much. Her name was Kushina. She was a very beautiful lady and she had such a kind heart. I wish you could've known her._ There were some dark spots on the paper where the ink had run a bit. Naruto could only assume they were tears.

_I'm not sure what else to write. There's so much I want to tell you. I know I'm the Hokage and that I must make sacrifices for Konoha, but you shouldn't have to. Please forgive me for what I must do._

_Sandaime just told me that the sealing circle is complete. You look like a small angel with all the candles around you._

_Be a good boy. Try not to cause too much trouble. If you're anything like me, then I know whoever takes care of you is going to be driven insane. Treat the ladies with respect. Not that I'm the one to talk though. At least, not until your mother straightened me out._

_I have to go. I love you so very much.  
_

_Be safe,_

_Namikaze Minato_

_P.S- If you ever run into a man named Jiraiya, don't listen to a damned thing he says. He'll turn you into a pervert._

Naruto laughed a little as he wiped away his tears. Tsunade looked at him strangely. "What is it?" she asked.

Naruto chuckled a little. "He told me not to listen to Erro Sennin."

Tsunade found this so amusing that she laughed till she could barely breathe. Once she managed to stop herself she opened the photo album that had come dangerously close to falling off her lap. "I've had these for a long time. I never thought they'd be so important."

Naruto just stared at the first picture. Minato was sitting in a tree looking down at whoever was taking the picture.

Naruto touched the image of his father.  _I wish you were here..._ He turned the page and saw Minato standing next to a woman with short red hair. Something about her just screamed 'tomboy'.

"That would be your mother," Tsunade answered a little sadly.

"Wait...if you knew my parents, then why didn't you know who I was?" Naruto asked suspiciously.

Tsunade swallowed. "The Third told us that you died when your mother was killed. And that Minato gave you the name Uzumaki to honor Kushina," Tsunade sighed heavily. "Minato and Kushina were very close friends of mine. If I had known you were their child, I would never have left Konoha," she said as she slowly clenched her fist. She suddenly sat bolt upright, eyes wide. "Wait a minute! Naruto, you have a cousin!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"What?!" Naruto yelled, dropping the photo album to the floor.

"Well, first cousin once removed, actually," Tsunade corrected her self.

"Who?!" Naruto asked urgently.

"Doctor Tokiha. He's Kushina's cousin, so he's also your cousin," Tsunade finished with a smile.

Naruto smiled softly. "So much family...all in one day..."

Tsunade put her arms around Naruto and squeezed him gently. "Always, Brat—From now on you'll always have family."


	12. The Beating

Tsunade sat straight up in bed, eyes burning with anger. "Jiraiya..." she hissed in a whisper. She jumped out of bed, threw on her robe, and opened her bedroom door. "Hatake."

Kakashi dropped his illusion technique. "Hai, Tsunade-sama."

"Send an anbu team to find Jiraiya," Tsunade commanded.

"Hai." Kakashi bowed and vanished.

As soon as she was sure Kakashi was gone Tsunade's mask of calm fell like a dead tree.  _When he gets here...I'll kill him,_ she growled in her mind. She then walked back into her room and shut the door.

 

* * *

**Two days later- October 1st...**

Naruto and Sakura arrived at the Hyuuga estate at 9 am. They were picking up Hinata for her and Sakura's first day of training. After waiting about fifteen minutes Naruto became impatient. "I'm gonna knock," he announced. Just as he raised his fist to do so the door opened and a sleepy looking Hinata appeared.

"S...sorry, Naruto-kun," Hinata said with a faint blush on her cheeks.

Naruto smiled. "No problem. Ready to go?"

Hinata smiled and made an affirmative nod. She turned to Sakura. "Good morning, Sakura-san," she said politely.

Sakura shook her head. "Hinata...we're going to be working together. You can just call me Sakura," she said with a smile.

"Okay," Hinata replied as the trio started walking. "Naruto-kun?"

Naruto looked at Hinata over his shoulder. "Yeah?"

"Thank you...for asking Tsunade-sama to train me," Hinata said quietly.

Naruto grinned. "You're welcome." They were silent for a moment then he spoke again. "Hey, are you two busy on the tenth?" he asked.

"I have to train with Neji-nii-san," Hinata said with regret.

"I'm going to a movie...why?" Sakura asked.

Naruto threw on a grin. "Nothin' important," he said before he turned his gaze back to the road.

Hinata and Sakura could have sworn they saw Naruto's eyes cloud over in sadness just before they disappeared from view.

Sakura moved closer to Hinata. "Did you see that?" she whispered.

Hinata nodded.

"We should find out what's wrong," Sakura decided.

Hinata bit her lower lip as she watched Naruto's blonde spikes of hair bounce with his footfalls. "M...maybe after we get off the main road?"

"Okay," Sakura confirmed.

After a few minutes, they turned a corner onto the tree-lined road that led to Tsunade's estate. Sakura and Hinata quickened their pace till they were in step with Naruto. Sakura grabbed his wrist and turned him around. "Alright," she said firmly, "What's going on?"

"What?" Naruto questioned.

"What's so important about the tenth?" Sakura pushed.

Naruto made a slightly nervous smile. "Just a two for one sale at Ichiraku Ramen," he insisted as he tried to pull his wrist out of Sakura's grasp.

Sakura frowned and bopped Naruto on the head. "You're a lousy liar."

Suddenly, Hinata was in front of Naruto. "Please, Naruto-kun? I...don't like to see your eyes that sad," Hinata pleaded.

Naruto's resolved crumpled under the concerned stare of Hinata's eyes. He suddenly found himself unable to do anything except stare at those eyes. It wasn't until Sakura waved her hand in front of his face that he came back to reality.

"Naruto!" Sakura said loudly.

Naruto shook his head.  _Just what the hell is the matter with me?_ he thought as he stole one more quick glance at Hinata before answering the frustrated, pink-haired kunoichi to his right. He sighed in defeat. "It's my...birthday."

Sakura visibly brightened. "Why didn't you just say that?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "Well, I've never...celebrated it with anyone before so I felt awkward telling you."

Both girls stiffened and let their mouths fall open. Disbelief was evident on their faces.

"Never..." Hinata began, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes.

"Celebrated," Sakura finished as her face fell into a sad frown. "Naruto..." she said as hugged the boy in front of her. "I'm sorry."

Hinata wasn't sure she knew him well enough to have the right to do so, but she joined in the hug; trying desperately not to pass out from all the blood that was rushing to her cheeks. "I'll reschedule my training," she said with a smile as she pulled back from the hug.

"And I can see that movie any time," Sakura added.

Naruto smiled happily. "Thank you."

"AHHH! I've only got two weeks to plan your party!" Sakura yelled suddenly. "We need cake, streamers, music!" she said as she ticked off the items on her fingers, "Your first birthday party has to be perfect!" Sakura said with her fists balled and flames of determination in her eyes.

Naruto just stared at her. "Um...Sakura-chan. You're kinda scary right now."

* * *

Jiraiya turned around from the peephole he was looking through. "It's been a while, Kakashi." He grinned evilly. "Care to join me?"

Kakashi eh hemmed as he stepped out from behind a tree. "Perhaps another time. Tsunade-sama requests your presence."

"Oh?" Jiraiya said as he cocked an eyebrow.

* * *

"Welcome girls," Tsunade said with a smile.

Sakura and Hinata bowed. "Thank you for agreeing to train us, Sensei," Hinata said respectfully.

"You're welcome, Hinata. Now, follow me. Naruto, we'll see you later," Tsunade said as she began to head into the house.

"I can't go?" Naruto asked.

Tsunade made a wry smile and leaned in close to his ear. "I think you would be a distraction to Hinata," she whispered. A slight pink tinge found its way to Naruto's cheeks. Tsunade laughed in amusement.

Naruto frowned. "What's so funny?"

Tsunade clapped a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "You'll figure it out someday," she said with a grin.

"Huh?" Naruto said as scratched the side of his nose.

Tsunade just snickered and walked away. 

 _What's she talking about?_ Naruto thought with a frown.

 _At least he'd better figure it out. I don't want to have to be the one to get it through that thick head of his,_ Tsunade thought as she entered the house.

 

* * *

Orochimaru sat in a chair in front of his fireplace watching the flames as they licked the logs inside. "Kabuto," he called.

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto said as he moved to his master's side.

"Have you found the third source yet?" Orochimaru said with a thoughtfully curled finger supporting his chin.

Kabuto nervously cleared his throat. "No, Orochimaru-sama. Finding someone who can summon the frogs beside Jiraiya and Naruto is proving difficult."

"Hmm. Then you will simply have to pull out one of the frogs by force."

Kabuto's eyes widened slightly. "Is that even possible?"

Orochimaru smiled and simply chuckled cruelly.

 

* * *

Kabuto moved the chalk fluidly along the stone floor. He finished his work and stood up. "Ready," he announced.

Orochimaru knelt down in front of the summoning circle on the floor and made a long series of seals. "Rachi, Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (A/N- Abduction summoning technique)" he yelled as he slammed his hands down on the circle. When the smoke cleared Gama Kichi lay on the floor in the center of the circle, bound with ropes of glowing chakra.

"What the...?!" Gama Kichi yelled in surprise. He looked up to see his captor. "Orochimaru! How the hell did you call me without the contract?!"

Orochimaru smiled. "Wouldn't you like to know? Kabuto, the scroll," he said, holding out his open hand.

Kabuto handed Orochimaru a green colored scroll that was nearly the length of his forearm.

Orochimaru opened the scroll and placed his right index finger in the center of the scroll's kanji. "Ayauku Koukyo Fuuin No Jutsu! (A/N- Near Death Sealing Technique)" A green light shot from the scroll into Gama Kichi.

"AHHHHHHH!" Gama Kichi screamed and then was silent. His body fell limp and his eyes remained open.

Orochimaru calmly rolled up the scroll and handed it to Kabuto. "Place this in my chamber and put him in one of the cages."

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama. Which color is next?"

"Purple..." Orochimaru said in a warning tone.

"That's going to be extremely dangerous. Manda will try to kill you for taking one of his kin," Kabuto said with concern.

Orochimaru gave Kabuto a dangerous look. "Are you implying that I haven't thought to take precautions?"

"Not at all, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto replied nervously.

 

* * *

The cloud of smoke cleared, leaving an irritated looking Manda. Seeing there was no battle to be fought he immediately began to complain. "Orochimaru—what is the meaning of this?! I am not in the mood for your games!"

Unflinching, Orochimaru walked up to Manda. "I was wondering if you would let me have one of your less useful kin to play with," he said with a sick smile.

Manda bent down to glare at Orochimaru. "Just what the fuck are you up to now?" he spat.

"Just an experiment," Orochimaru replied casually.

"And why the hell should I do you any favors?!" Manda growled.

"Oh come now, Manda. I know you hate having weaklings among your ranks. Why should you care?"

Manda sighed and twitched his tail in irritation. "Fine. But if you ever call me for something other than battle again I will kill you," he said in a threatening tone before leaving the clearing in a puff of smoke. In his place was a rather skinny and confused looking summon snake.

 

* * *

Kabuto placed the purple scroll into its designated holder.  _"Three more to go,"_  he thought with a smile. He left the room and walked off to get their next victim.

 

* * *

 

**The next day...**

Tsunade was sitting at her desk working on some reports when a knock sounded on the door. She looked up. "Yes?"

Shikamaru poked his head in. "Jiraiya-sama has arrived," he said in a bored tone.

"Thank you, Shikamaru," Tsunade said with a smile. "Have him meet me at my training grounds in fifteen minutes."

"Hai, Tsunade-sama," Shikamaru said as he bowed and shut the door.

 

* * *

Jiraiya leaned up against a tree near the obstacle course. He watched the forest that lead to Tsunade's house with unease. He knew that if she had requested that he meet with her at the training grounds that she wanted a place where she could hit him and not cause a scene. Things were not looking good.

He suddenly noticed a small, dark shape becoming visible through the foliage. Tsunade burst through the trees, landed on the field and kept running at full speed. She had a murderous look in her eyes. "Tsunade?!" he barely managed to get out before he went sailing through the air from a punch to his head.

"TSUNADE, WHAT THE HELL...?!" he yelled as he quickly got to his feet.

"YOU SHUT UP!" Tsunade yelled as she landed a kick to his right shoulder.

Jiraiya shot backward, gouging a trail in the ground. He got up just in time to block the next kick and the seven that followed. During each kick he found out more of the reason why he was being used as a practice dummy.

"How DARE YOU not tell me!" Tsunade accused as she threw another punch.

"Not tell you WHAT?!" Jiraiya shot back as he dodged her attack.

"You were THERE!" Another punch. "YOU KNEW!" A roundhouse kick. "WHY DID YOU LEAVE HIM ALONE?!" she screeched as she slugged Jiraiya in the gut. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he doubled over and fell to the ground.

Jiraiya stood up. "WHO?!" he bellowed.

"NARUTO!" Tsunade screamed as she sent Jiraiya into a tree via a sideways kick.

Jiraiya looked up at his friend in horror. _Shit...she knows...how does she know?_

Tsunade stood in front of Jiraiya, sweat dripping down her forehead and breathing heavily through gritted teeth. "Why?" she said, her voice shaking with rage. "Why did you leave him here? And why the HELL didn't you tell ME who he was?!" she yelled.

Tears were leaking from the corners of the Fifth's eyes. "Did you think I was stupid?! Did you really think once I got the letter from Sandaime that I wouldn't have figured it out?!"

"I..." Jiraiya began.

"You were the one who  _delivered_  him! There's no way in HELL you didn't know!" Tsunade yelled, gesturing angrily with her hands.

"Dammit, Tsunade. The Third  _ordered_  me not to tell anyone!"

Tsunade walked over to Jiraiya and slapped him, whipping his head to the side. "That didn't mean you had to abandon him!" she spat. Tears now freely spilled over her cheeks. "You...you could have spared him so much pain."

Jiraiya swallowed and looked at Tsunade with weary, regretful eyes. "I couldn't take him with me. I don't know anything about raising a baby."

"Then you should have told me so I could've taken him! Orders or no orders! Minato was our friend, your STUDENT! You had a duty to his _son_!"

"You think I don't KNOW that?!" Jiraiya yelled. He sighed. "I was grieving, Tsunade. I loved Minato like my own son. Do you think it was  _easy_  for me to lose him?!" He ran a hand backward through his spiky hair. "I...I wanted to tell you Naruto was alive. I planned to, but on the day I went to your house to tell you, you were already gone. Someone told me Dan had died in battle. I knew you weren't coming back...so I left too," he finished with a look of sorrow.

Tsunade dropped to her knees. Her hands covered her eyes as she sobbed heavily.

Jiraiya crawled over to his friend. "Tsunade..." he said as he closed his arms around her. "We can't do anything about the past. All we can do is try to make things right again."

Tsunade, suddenly feeling uncomfortable in Jiraiya's arms, pulled back. "He deserves to know that you knew who he was from the beginning. You  _have_  to tell him," she said sternly.

Jiraiya nodded. "Nhm. I will—but after I am done with my reconnaissance. Orochimaru is still after Naruto. I need to find out why."

Tsunade seemed satisfied with Jiraiya's answer. "Alright," she said as they stood. "But if you don't, you can expect me to do more than just punch you," she said with conviction.

Jiraiya nodded and walked away. As she watched him go Tsunade felt her strength leave her. She left the field and plodded back to the house.

The door to Naruto's room opened slowly. As the shaft of light from the hallway fell across the sleeping boy's face a gentle hand reached out and caressed his cheek. "I will never leave you alone again," Tsunade promised as she kissed him on the forehead. She turned around and quietly left the room.

...TO BE CONTINUED


	13. Decorations

Please review. I love reviews! Thanks!

 

* * *

Jiraiya sat on the ground with his back against a large tree. In front of him was an orange frog with blue markings who was about three feet tall.

"That's all we know. Gama-Bunta is worried sick. Please find him," said the frog in a concerned tone.

"I'll do my best, Gama-Ikinone," Jiraiya replied as he clapped a reassuring hand on the frog's shoulder.

"Thank you," replied Gama-Ikinone just before he disappeared.

Jiraiya's face took on a look of grave concentration.  _Why the hell would Orochimaru kidnap Gama-Kichi?_

 

* * *

**The morning of October tenth...**

Sasuke rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he got up to open the door. Whoever it was knocked again. "I'm coming, dammit," he mumbled in irritation. He opened the door to see Sakura standing there. "It's 5 am. This better be good," he said as he glared at her.

"I need your help with Naruto's party," Sakura said with a smile.

Sasuke simply shut the door.

Sakura vein popped, opened the door and walked into the house. "You promised you'd help me!"

Sasuke turned around. "You never said anything about doing this so damned early," he replied.

"Sasuke!" Sakura said in annoyance.

Sasuke merely turned around and waved her off. "I'll be there when the party starts," he said as he went into his room and shut the door.

Sakura growled through her teeth and marched back out of the house. As she shut the door a male voice spoke.

"No luck?"

Sakura sighed angrily. "No. And I don't dare try to get Hinata. Her dad would kill me for visiting this early." She sighed again and smiled. "I guess it's just us, Lee-kun."

"Don't worry, Sakura-san! I've got enough stuff to decorate your whole house," Lee said as he patted the large cardboard box he was holding.

"The thing is...we're not decorating my house.."

Lee's face twisted into a frown of confusion. "Huh?"

"Tsunade-sama said we could have the party at her house. And her living room is  _huge_."

Lee put a thoughtful finger to his lips for a moment. "If we're decorating Tsunade-sama's house then we are definitely gonna need help."

"But who else is up this early?" Sakura questioned.

Lee snapped his fingers in triumph. "TenTen!"

"TenTen?"

"Yeah! She gets up at four thirty every morning to train," Lee replied with a grin.

Sakura's eyes widened in surprise. "Four thirty!" she squeaked.

Lee's smile faltered a bit. "Yeah. She's been doing it ever since the Chuunin exam. She's afraid her aim is no longer perfect."

"B...but it was Temari's fan that made her weapons miss," Sakura said in confusion. "And aren't you the one who was training even though you were still in the hospital?" she accused with her hands on her hips.

Lee shook his head. "Training when you have no confidence in yourself is pointless. If you don't believe in yourself then you second guess every action in battle and that can be dangerous."

Sakura's eyes opened wide.

 

FLASHBACK

"What if I can't do it?" Sakura asked with a grimace.

Tsunade frowned. "Training without confidence in yourself is pointless. If you are second guessing yourself in battle you will do nothing, but put your teammates in danger."

 END FLASHBACK

 

Sakura shook away her thoughts and smiled with determination. "Well, then we'll just have to get her confidence back!"

Lee grinned.  _God, I love her,_ he thought.

 

* * *

As the Sakura and Lee neared TenTen's house they heard the sound of weapons piercing wood. They rounded the corner of the building and entered the backyard.

TenTen was moving with unmatched preciseness as she threw her many weapons at the targets in front of her. Her usually neat buns were beginning to fall out of their elastics. Sweat matted her clothes to her body and her face was screwed up in determination.

She skidded to a stop when she sensed someone nearby.

"Yo, TenTen," Lee called.

"Lee-kun! Sakura-san. Why are you two here this early?" TenTen said in between her gasps for air.

Sakura smiled. "We were wondering if you'd like to help us decorate for Naruto's birthday party."

TenTen bit her lower lip. "I dunno. I really need to train."

"Please? Tsunade-sama's house is too big for just me and Lee-kun to decorate.

"It's at Tsunade-sama's house!?" TenTen said excitedly. She walked over to a stump that was a few feet away, picked up the towel that was sitting on it and began to wipe the back of her neck. "I'll be right back,'" she said, still taking her breaths in quick puffs. "Just let me take a quick shower and change." She ran off into her house, leaving Lee and Sakura to wait in the yard.

"Not that I'm complaining, but I wonder why she changed her mind so easily," Sakura mused.

Lee smiled. "She's been waiting for a chance to ask Tsunade-sama to train her."

"Hmm. I wonder if she'd take on a third student." Sakura looked at the watch she had recently started wearing. "I hope she doesn't take long. We only have three hours."

TenTen was back in the yard, wearing her usual outfit in just over ten minutes. "Let's go!" she said to a stunned Sakura and Lee.

* * *

"Lee-kun, what are you doing?!" Sakura demanded as she rushed over to where Lee was trying to hang some streamers on the other side of the living room.

"Huh?" he replied, doing a perfect impression of a deer caught in someone's headlights.

"You can't just hang them straight across the wall like that!" Sakura complained as she took the streamers down and proceeded to instruct Lee on the 'proper' way to hang streamers. "See? You need to twist them first and then make sure you make little loops when you tape them to the wall..."

Lee, who had long since gotten over the shock of Sakura's sudden outburst, was taking the opportunity to just stare at her.  _She's so beautiful._ He sighed internally.  _I wish there was some way I could turn her heart away from Sasuke,_ he thought in mild despair. She began to turn around and so he looked away.

"Got it?" Sakura said with a pleased smile as she turned around. Her smile faltered when she saw that he was looking in the opposite direction. "Lee-kun!" she complained.

"Hai, Sakura-san. I saw what you did. I was just...uh..."

Sakura saw the time on the digital clock behind Lee and gasped. "Oh no! We only have an hour left until Naruto comes back!"

She shoved the rest of the streamers at Lee. "Hurry! Get these up while I frost the cake!" she said as she rushed off to the kitchen.

TenTen pushed the string for hanging the centerpiece through the hole in the center of her shuriken and deftly tossed it toward the ceiling. It landed perfectly centered. TenTen folded her arms and smiled, obviously pleased with herself.

Sakura, however, was not pleased. "Geez, TenTen-san. If you put holes in Tsunade-sama's roof I'm the one who's going to get yelled at," she said as she came back from the kitchen.

TenTen simply waved her off. "It's fine, Sakura-san. I made sure it only went in far enough to secure it to the ceiling. It's no worse than a tack," she said with a smile.

Sakura threw up her hands in defeat and walked off to start on the snack table. TenTen laughed and took the opportunity to steal a glance at her crush. She sighed as Lee went about hanging the streamers.  _If only he wasn't stuck on Sakura-san,_ she mused in her mind.

Lee knew TenTen was watching him, but he pretended not to notice. He decided it was best to avoid the subject since he knew he would only ever love Sakura.  _I wonder when it went from crush to love? Maybe during the Chuunin exam?_  He sighed inwardly.  _I may have just liked her in the beginning, but now..._ He gulped hard and stood.  _I have to tell her. Even if she doesn't feel the same. I just won't feel any peace until she knows,_  he decided. "Gai Sensei! I'm going to do it!" he said with conviction. His cheeks reddened when he realized he had said it out loud. Both Sakura and TenTen were staring at him. He immediately sat back down.  _Maybe...after the party,_  he thought with a sigh.

 

* * *

Hinata reached over and smacked the alarm clock. "Ehhhhh! Oh no! It's eight o' clock already!" she exclaimed with wide eyes. She was startled when she heard a knock on the front door. "It's Sakura-chan! I have to get dressed!" she squeaked, whipping open her clothing drawer.

Someone knocked on Hinata's door. "Hinata-sama. Aren't you ready yet? Sakura-san is already here!" said Neji's voice.

"Hai! I'll be right there!"

 

* * *

Sakura looked at her watch again just as Hinata and Neji came into the sitting room. They both bowed. "Our apologies, Sakura-san," Neji said formally.

"I overslept," Hinata added.

Sakura looked incredulous. She pointed at Hinata. "You're not going to wear  _that_  are you?"

Hinata looked down at herself. She was wearing her usual outfit. "I...is there something wrong with it?"

"Don't you know anything about boys?" Sakura said in frustration. She grabbed Hinata by the wrist and dragged her back towards her room. "You go on ahead, Neji. We'll be there soon."

As the two girls disappeared down the hall Neji sighed and rolled his eyes. "Frivolous nonsense..." He left the house and headed for Tsunade's home.

 

* * *

"The fifth and sixth colors have been secured, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto said respectfully.

"That just leaves the ferret summons," Orochimaru answered. "Once you are through with that, begin stage two."

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama. How do you plan to take him this time? I doubt he'll fall for the same trick twice," Kabuto said, pushing up his glasses with one finger.

"There's no way around it now. We will have to take the more 'direct' approach. Assemble a team. We will attack when he leaves for his next mission," Orochimaru commanded.

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto replied, then vanished.

"Finally, after fourteen years of planning, I will have the ultimate vessel. Ku ku ku..." Orochimaru chuckled with glee.


	14. A Very Belated Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea if they sing the happy birthday song in Japan, but I'm putting it in any way, so there. :Grin:

 

Jiraiya walked up to the gates of Konoha, his conversation with Gama-Ikinone nagging at him.  _"Why do I always receive this kind of information at the worst possible times?"_  he pondered with a sigh. The tower guard opened the gate and he walked on through, heading for Tsunade's estate.

 

* * *

 

"Are you sure this is alright?" Hinata asked nervously as she looked at her reflection in the full-length mirror on her bedroom wall. She was wearing a pair of denim shorts that stopped about mid-thigh and a sapphire blue tank top that she had  _insisted_  was only for sleeping in when Sakura had pulled it out of her dresser. It was cotton and had lace that ran the length of the neckline. It had also been tied up so that a good three inches of her midriff was showing.

"Trust me. Naruto won't be able to take his eyes off you," Sakura answered with a sly grin. It had taken some convincing, but she had also gotten Hinata to wear some lipstick. Nothing too brash; just a warm peach, but it brought out her eyes magnificently.

Hinata turned tomato red at her friend's comment. She gulped hard and turned to Sakura. "Can we go now?" she asked, praying Sakura didn't have anything else in store for her.

Sakura grinned and nodded. "I think you'll make him sweat thoroughly enough," she said with a wink. Hinata made a small, strangled squeak and Sakura chuckled.

* * *

As Jiraiya neared the road that lead to Tsunade's estate he noticed something that made him smile in amusement. An insistent pink-haired girl was half dragging a very reluctant white-eyed girl by the wrist towards the estate. He made a loud cough as he neared the girls so as not to startle them. "Ah, Sakura, Hinata," he called in greeting, having recognized them from Naruto's descriptions.

Sakura turned in the direction of the voice that had called to her. "Who are...?" She recognized the scroll on the large man's back from her schoolbooks. Her eyes widened.  _That scroll! That's the frog summon contract scroll!_ "J...Jiraiya-sama! What are you doing here?"

 _ **The**  Jiraiya?! _Hinata thought in disbelief.

A smug look came over Jiraiya's face at the reaction his presence had garnered. "Naruto's birthday party," he answered aristocratically.

Sakura's eyes showed her shock. "How do you know Naruto?"

Jiraiya buffed his nails on his outfit. "Who do you think taught him to summon the great frogs?" he said with pride.

"Wait a minute...Naruto can summon?" Sakura replied with confusion and surprise.

At this Jiraiya fell over in disbelief, then quickly got up and began ranting. "How could he not show his friends the technique that the magnificent Jiraiya taught him!" he said with indignation.

Sakura's eyebrow twitched.  _Is this really Jiraiya-sama?_

"Um," Hinata said meekly. "We're going to be late."

Jiraiya's expression changed completely. "Well then, let's go!" he exuberantly commanded before walking off down the road.

Hinata and Sakura just stood there, frozen in shock of the abrupt change that had come over the man who now walked ahead of them as if he owned the world. Sakura twitched again.  _This guy..._

 

* * *

"Neh. Shizune Nee-chan?" Naruto asked as he and Shizune walked back home.

"Yes, Naruto-kun?" Shizune answered over her shoulder.

"You still haven't said anything about...you know...about today..." Naruto said carefully.

Shizune chuckled warmly. "Don't worry, Naruto-kun. I haven't forgotten your birthday. I have a present for you at the house."

Naruto's eyes widened and misted over. "A present...Really?"

Shizune made a comforting smile. "Of course. And Tsunade-sama has one for you too." She stopped short when she realized Naruto was no longer following her. She turned around, concern clouding her features. "Naruto-kun?" A lump formed in her throat when she saw that tears were falling from the eyes of the young man in front of her. "Naruto-kun," she said sympathetically as she wrapped a comforting arm around his shoulders.

 

* * *

Sakura, Hinata, Iruka and Sasuke were crouched down behind the couch. Kiba, Jiraiya, Kakashi, and Tsunade crouched along the wall to the right of the front door. Shikamaru, Chouji, Ino, Lee, Neji, Nabiki and Konohamaru were behind various objects throughout the room.

Neji was in the middle of muttering about how hiding like they were was childish when Sakura noticed a light flicker outside the large picture window. "Quiet!" she hissed. "They're here!"

Naruto squinted as he and Shizune neared the house. Something wasn't right. "Shizune Nee-chan. The house is dark!" he whispered in alarm.

 _Hmmm. Better play along,_ Shizune thought. "Go quietly," she instructed with a stern face.

Naruto nodded his confirmation. The two shinobi moved carefully and quickly towards the house, all the while Shizune was using every ounce of her willpower to keep from falling to the ground in fits of laughter.

They took positions on either side of the front door. Before Shizune could stop him, Naruto flung a large group of shuriken into the house.  _Shit!_ she thought in panic.

Neji's body was twisted sideways in a very uncomfortable position from having to dodge a shuriken that had come towards his head. "Still think this was a great idea?" he growled as he glared at Sakura.

Naruto squinted, trying to see whoever might be lurking in the dark living room.  _Why haven't they fought back?_  he thought in confusion. He inched closer to the doorway. Suddenly light flooded his vision, temporarily blinding him as loud popping sounds assaulted his hearing. "SURPRISE!" yelled what sounded like a large group of people. "What the hell is going on?" Naruto asked loudly.

When Naruto's vision cleared the sight that met his eyes was one that would be engraved into his memory forever. The living room was decorated beautifully in orange and blue streamers. There was a large cake with fourteen candles, a giant pile of presents sat on the floor on the right side of the room, a banner strung across the back bore the words 'Happy birthday Naruto'. And the best part...everyone he cared about was standing in the center of it all, holding the party poppers they had just used. His eyes misted over as he laughed in tentative joy and disbelief.  _Please don't let this be a dream,_  he begged in his mind.

Sakura walked over to the stunned boy and gave him a hug. "Happy birthday, Naruto." She frowned and released him when he didn't return the hug. "Naruto...?"

Naruto sucked in a tearful breath and looked up. "Sakura...just tell me one thing..." he said with desperately hopeful eyes.

"What?" Sakura asked, concerned.

"This is real...right?" Naruto asked as he swallowed the lump in his throat.

Sakura smiled wide and warm. "It's real. And it's all for you."

Naruto laughed lightly in joy. Tears freely rolled down his face. "Everyone...thank you. Thank you so much. This is..." He was at a loss for words.

Tsunade came forward and hugged her adopted son. "Our pleasure, Brat."

Naruto sniffed, took a deep breath and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. With a grin to end all grins, he thrust a fist into the air and shouted, "Alright everyone! Let's get this party started!"

Everyone in the room chuckled. Lee pressed play on the cassette deck.

"Lee. That's too loud!" Shizune said with her hands over her ears.

Lee couldn't hear Shizune, but realized what her hands being over her ears meant and immediately turned down the volume.

Friends and family took turns wishing Naruto a happy birthday. The blonde ninja couldn't understand how it could get any happier. He had never felt more loved in all his life.  _This is the best day ever,_ he thought with a smile. "Naruto-kun?" said a voice from behind him. He turned around to see someone he barely recognized as being Hinata.

He suddenly found he had lost the ability to speak. Hinata's clothes were so different from her usual fare. Not to mention that the shirt she was wearing was tight and showing off a few physical assets that her baggier clothes generally hid. He kept opening his mouth to say something, but the sound just wouldn't come out.

Finally, Hinata, feeling a bit uncomfortable under Naruto's stunned gaze, spoke up. "Naruto-kun, are you alright?"

"Uhh..." was Naruto's reply.  _What's wrong with me!_  he thought in frustration. "H...Hinata-chan?" he managed to force out at last.

"Yes?" Hinata replied as she shifted her weight nervously.

Naruto's nose chose this moment to utterly betray him. The second the tiny trickle of warm blood escaped his nostril his hand flew to his face. "Uh...ummmm. I gotta pee! I'll be back in a sec!" he said quickly as he bolted for the bathroom.

 _Did I do something wrong?_  Hinata wondered.

Sakura watched Naruto run off with his hand covering his nose. She cocked an eyebrow.  _Maybe I overdid it,_  she wondered. Then she shook her head.  _Naaaa,_  she thought with an amused grin.

* * *

"What the hell is going on!" Naruto grumbled. "I like Sakura-chan." He put a hand to his forehead as though he had a headache. "Don't I...?" He tried very hard to bring an image of Sakura into his mind, but the only person that would appear was Hinata.

 

FLASHBACK

_Well...I came to tell you that I don't feel the same way," Naruto said, his voice filled with apology._

_"Oh..." Hinata said, as her eyes misted over._

_"But..." Naruto continued._

_Hinata looked up at Naruto with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "There's a 'but'?"_

_"We can hang out more. And maybe after a while, I'll change my mind," Naruto said with a smile._

_Hinata smiled widely. "Really?"_

 END FLASHBACK

 

"Hm. Maybe that's what's happening." Naruto sighed as he stared at the mirror. "Ahhhhhhgggh! This is so confusing!"

* * *

After a few minutes of cooling off in the bathroom, Naruto felt brave enough to venture back out into the party. He saw Hinata talking to Sakura and felt himself blush. He simply sighed and wandered over to the cake.

Naruto looked left, then right, then left again. Satisfied that no one was watching he quickly scooped up some of the frosting with his right index finger. "What do you think you're doing?" said a stern voice.

Naruto turned around to see Sakura standing there, arms folded. "I didn't spend an hour making that cake so you could put finger tracks in it," she scolded.

Naruto grinned sheepishly, then noticed that Hinata was right behind Sakura. The knot returned to his stomach, but he fought it down. "Yo, Hinata!" he said with a smile.

"I'll leave you two alone," Sakura teased.

"Sakura!" Naruto protested. "W...wait!"

"Naruto-kun, did I do something wrong earlier?" Hinata asked as she absentmindedly chewed her lower lip.

"No no. I just really had to go to the bathroom," Naruto replied with a smile, hoping she'd buy the excuse.

"Oh good," Hinata said, relief evident in her voice.

An upbeat song started playing. Naruto saw this as a chance to escape. "I'm gonna go dance," he announced as he began to walk off. He felt a tug on his sleeve.

"May I join you?" Hinata asked hopefully.

Naruto paused, trying not to think of how adorable she looked when she was unsure of herself. His resolved deflated. "Sure!" he said with a grin.

They took up positions across from each other and began to move to the music. Naruto glanced over to his right and noticed Sakura dancing with Lee. He was very surprised when he realized that it didn't bother him. He mentally shrugged and turned back to his dance partner. As he watched her dance, he smiled.  _Yeah...let's see what happens._

About twenty minutes later a shrill whistle blasted throughout the room. Everyone looked up at Tsunade. Lee ran over to the stereo and turned it off. "Time for cake everyone," she announced with a grin.

"Yes!" Naruto exclaimed as he punched the air.

Hinata giggled affectionately at Naruto's antics.

Tsunade put a chair in front of the cake and instructed Naruto to sit down. She lit the candles and everyone gathered around as Shizune killed the lights. The flames on the candles danced merrily as, for the fiftieth time that night, Naruto resisted asking someone to pinch him.

_**Happy birthday to you.** _

_**Happy birthday to you.** _

_**Happy birthday dear Naruto.** _

Tears fell from Naruto's eyes at hearing that line.

_**Happy birthday to you.** _

Naruto took a deep breath and blew out the candles. Everyone cheered and Tsunade ruffled her son's hair. She handed him a cake knife. "Go ahead."

Naruto made a quick, nervous glance at Sakura. Deciding she wasn't going to kill him if he cut up her handiwork, he proceeded to give himself a piece so large that it hung over the edge of the plate he put it on by a good inch.

Remembering it was her friend's birthday, Sakura resisted the urge to tell Naruto off for being a complete pig. She felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned around to see Lee looking nearly as green as his outfit. "Lee-kun are you okay?" she asked as she put a hand on his forehead to check his temperature.

Lee tried to ignore the fact that his heart was now racing from Sakura's touch. "Hai, Sakura-san. I just...can you come with me for a moment?" he said in a slightly strangled voice.

Sakura was concerned so she immediately agreed. "Sure."

Lee managed a nod and began walking out to the gardens in front of the house. Once they were out of sight and earshot of the rest of the partygoers Lee found a stone bench and sat down. "Please, sit," he instructed respectfully.

Sakura sat down and waited. After roughly three minutes she couldn't stand it anymore. "What's wrong?" she prodded.

Lee breathed deeply. "I have to tell you something. But before I continue I just want to say that I'm not trying to guilt trip you into anything."

Sakura frowned in thought. "Okay," she said smacking a mosquito that had landed on her arm.

"Sakura-san...I. When I first met you I instantly began to like you. And I've liked you all this time. And up until a few months ago I still  _liked_  you..." Lee swallowed. It was hard for him to say these things when he knew she didn't return his feelings.

Sakura's frown increased in depth. "You mean...you don't like me that way anymore?" For some reason she couldn't put her finger on, the prospect of Lee not liking her in a romantic fashion put a knot in her stomach.

Lee shook his head. "No. You see...I've realized...that now I...I'm in love with you," he confessed and lowered his head so she couldn't see his eyes.

The sound of the blood pounding in Sakura's ears blocked out all sounds of the party. She couldn't think of what to say. No boy had ever said those words to her. Not even Naruto, whom she knew had had a crush on her since before they became a team. "Lee-kun...I..."

Lee shook his head. "You don't have to say anything. I know you don't feel the same way. I just...I just had to tell you at least once," he said before getting up and running back to the house.

Sakura was actually a little glad that Lee had left as she reflected on what he'd said. It gave her time to think. She sat on the bench, her head resting in her right hand. "Lee-kun..."

* * *

Tsunade handed Naruto his first present. He took it from her hands as though it might shatter if he squeezed it too hard. He took off the wrapping and opened the box. His eyes lit up instantly.

Tsunade grinned. "That one's from me," she exclaimed as Naruto pulled a beautifully decorated ramen bowl from the box.

Naruto grinned. "Thanks, Granny Tsunade!" he said as he gave her a quick hug. He didn't notice Hinata, who used that moment to sneak over to the present pile and remove her gift to him.

Sakura came in from the garden just as Naruto grabbed the next package. She noticed Lee and made sure to stand on the other side of the crowd from him. She didn't want any of the discomfort she was feeling at the moment to ruin Naruto's party.  _Please don't take this the wrong way, Lee-kun,_  she begged mentally. Naruto opened his second gift with a little less grace. Excitement had overtaken his previous tentative feelings. "Thanks, TenTen!" he exclaimed as he pulled out a shiny new set of kunai and set it aside.

The pile of boxes and wrapping paper grew until Naruto was down to his last three gifts. He picked up an envelope. It read:  ** _To Naruto: Love Sakura_**. He smiled as he tore it open. "AHHHHHHAAAA! Sakura-chan, thank you so much!" he yelled as he threw his arms around his pink haired friend.

"What did you get him?" Sasuke asked as Naruto released Sakura from the hug.

Sakura grinned. "A one-year free meal pass to Ichiraku."

Sasuke smirked and folded his arms. "Hm."

Naruto frowned in confusion at the last gift. It was book shaped and a bit heavy.  ** _To Naruto: from Sasuke_**. He shrugged and opened the wrapping. It was a black leather binder with the Uchiha house symbol on the cover. "What's this?" he asked his brother.

Sasuke looked uncomfortable. He shrugged. "It's all I could think of. I'm not good at this sort of thing."

Naruto opened the binder and began thumbing through the pages. It seemed to be a record book. Each entry contained the name of someone from the Uchiha clan. It included their date of birth and blood type. It ran in alphabetical order. When he got to the 'N's his finger stopped moving. He felt a lump form in his throat.

**_Uchiha, Naruto...DOB: 10/10...Blood type: B_ **

"S...Sasuke...this is..." Naruto said, barely above a whisper.

"I got the updated book from the records office yesterday. I figured you'd like it," Sasuke replied, trying to sound nonchalant.

Naruto's eyes misted over. "Thank you," he said in a choked voice as he put the book on the arm of the chair he was sitting in.

Hinata smiled.  _Naruto-kun is so happy,_  she thought. She suddenly noticed Naruto looking over the pile of gifts with a slight frown. "Naruto-kun, is something wrong?"

He looked up at her. After a short pause, he answered, "I didn't get something from you." There was a bit of hurt in his voice.

"I...I haven't gotten it yet. I'm n...not sure what to get you," Hinata answered unconvincingly.

Naruto was busy struggling with trying to understand why Hinata would lie to him about her gift when Kiba called out from the other side of the room. "Oi, Hinata! You forgot your present for Naruto in the hall!"

Hinata's eyes widened as Kiba walked towards Naruto, obviously intending to hand him the carefully wrapped package. Just as Naruto reached out for the parcel Hinata snatched it out of her teammate's hands. "N..no!"

"Hinata-chan...?" Naruto questioned.

"I...I want to get you something better. This present's not good enough," Hinata said with nervous regret.

"Hinata-chan. I'll like it. I promise," Naruto said with a reassuring grin.

Hinata hesitated before handing over the gift. Naruto took it from her with a warm smile and began to open it. She began to feel sick.  _"I should've thought of something better,"_  she thought, nearly in tears.

The wrapping now completely gone, Naruto proceeded to open the box and pull away the tissue paper. Inside the box was a decorative ramen bowl. Only this one was different from the one Tsunade had given him. He could tell it had been hand painted. His name was in kanji on one side and on the other was a chibified Naruto slurping up a big bite of Ramen.  _She made this...?_  he thought in awe. Suddenly he remembered what his first gift had been and felt a rush of sympathy for his friend.  _She tried to hide it because I already got a ramen bowl._

Naruto looked up at the crestfallen girl in front of him. He stood up and held up the bowl. "It's awesome, Hinata-chan! I love it!" he said with a grin.

Hinata blinked in surprise. "Really?" she sniffed.

"You're a great artist! This is the coolest ramen bowl ever! Thank you!" Naruto proclaimed as he gave the startled girl a crushing hug.

Hinata managed to smile as her fears melted away. "You're welcome, Naruto-kun."

Naruto broke the hug and set the bowl down on the chair. "C'mon. Let's go dance!" With that, he grabbed Hinata's hand and lead her into the center of the room. As they danced Naruto realized he wasn't nervous about being around Hinata in her new clothes anymore.  _Yeah...I think my feelings are changing..._


	15. Twins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ishindenshin no Jutsu= Mind Join Technique

Sakura woke up from her latest nightmare drenched in sweat. Her nightclothes stuck to her body as she drew her knees up to her chest and put her head in her hands.  _Dammit,_  she thought amidst her quick breaths. "Goddammit...Why do I have to keep dreaming about that? I've put it behind me...haven't I?"

Sakura walked into the bathroom, grabbed a dry hand towel and wiped off her face. "How? How can I stop thinking about their fight?" She turned off the bathroom light and walked back into her room.  _If I only knew exactly how it happened. Maybe then my mind would stop trying to fill in the blanks._  Her eyes suddenly snapped wide. "Ino..." She put on her dress and walked out of the house.

 

* * *

Ino rubbed the sleep from her eyes and went to see who the hell was throwing rocks at her window. As she opened one side of it she cocked an eyebrow in surprise at seeing Sakura staring up at her from the backyard lawn. "Sakura...?"

"Ino, can I come in?" Sakura whispered loudly.

"Do you know what time it is?" Ino grumbled.

"Yes! I need your help. Pleeease?" Sakura said with mild irritation.

Ino threw up her hands in defeat. "Alright. But be quiet..."

* * *

Ino handed the cup of hot tea to her friend. "So what's this all about?" she asked as she sat on the bed across from the chair Sakura was seated in.

Sakura took a deep breath, blowing away the steam rising from her cup when she exhaled it. "I want you to teach me Ishindenshin no Jutsu," she answered quietly.

Ino choked a bit on her sip of tea. "Are you serious?" she asked as she wiped the spilled tea off her pajamas.

Sakura nodded in affirmation. "Hai. I need to know exactly what happened during Sasuke-kun and Naruto's fight. I won't be able to stop thinking about it unless I do. So I need your technique so I can see for myself."

"How do you even  _know_  about that? I've never shown it to you," Ino questioned.

"Tsunade-sama told me. Will you teach me it or not?"

Ino's face took on a very serious look. "Sakura, it takes a lot of precise chakra control to do that. Not to mention if what you see is too much of a shock for your mind you might not be able to get back to your own body."

"I'll take you with me as a backup. And besides, Tsunade-sama has been teaching me a lot of things that require precise chakra control. I'll just go into Sasuke-kun's mind, see what I need to, and get out."

"You'll never get through Sasuke-kun's mind alive. Knowing him, he's probably learned how to set up traps for anyone who might try to get in." Ino suddenly perked up. "Wait...Naruto!"

"Naruto?"

"Yeah! Go into Naruto's mind," Ino proclaimed, looking rather proud of herself.

Sakura frowned. "I guess I could try that."

Ino yawned. "Well. Now that that's settled, I need to get some sleep. Come over in the morning."

Sakura nodded. "Okay," she said as she went to the window. Just as she was about to jump down she turned her head back. "Ino...thanks."

Ino smiled and Sakura disappeared from sight.

 

* * *

The Next Day....

"No," Shikamaru said plainly as he folded his arms.

"Please? She needs someone to practice on and it can't be me because I have to guide her," Ino begged, trying to look both coy and cutesy at the same time.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. He could see he wasn't going to win this one.  _"How troublesome,"_  he thought. "Fine. But let's make it quick. I have a mission in three hours," he relented. He then winced, knowing exactly what was coming.

"THANK YOU!" Ino yelled as she glomped the boy so tight he was struggling for air.

 

* * *

Shikamaru sat on Ino's bed, his mind blank as he could make it. Ino had told him to try not to think about anything, in order to make it easier for Sakura on her first attempt. Of course, now he was having a hard time not thinking of anything simply because Ino had told him not to.

Sakura came into the room. She had been practicing the seals by herself while Ino had gone to con Shikamaru into agreeing to be their guinea pig.

"Are you ready?" Ino asked. Sakura nodded. "Alright then. Go..." Ino instructed.

Sakura raised her hands and began the seals. "Boar, monkey, bird...Ishindenshin no Jutsu!" A sudden pain spiked in her left temple, causing her to put a hand to her forehead.

Ino shook her head. "You pushed too hard. You're not trying to hurt the enemy, just enter his mind."

Sakura nodded and repeated the jutsu. This time, she gave Shikamaru a headache.

"Ahg! Watch it," he complained.

Sakura sighed in frustration and repeated the jutsu again. She felt an odd whooshing sensation and suddenly found herself in a room completely devoid of light. But then she realized she could also see Shikamaru from the outside.  _"Huh? Did I mess up again?"_

Ino nodded in approval at Sakura's execution of the jutsu. "Okay, now just take a minute to get used to your surroundings."  ** _"Right"_** she heard in stereo. Her breath caught in her throat. She slowly turned her head to see Sakura standing, with her eyes open. Ino's head was frozen in place as she forced her eyes to look back at Shikamaru. His eyes were blank, as they should've been when under the influence of the jutsu. "Sa...kura?"

 ** _"Yeah?"_**  came the answer from Sakura and Shikamaru said at the same time.

Ino's eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. "Holy shit..."

**_"What's wrong?"_ **

Ino held up her hand. "Be quiet for a sec."

Sakura and Shikamaru's faces frowned.

"Sakura, move your right arm," Ino instructed as she took a few steps backward for a better vantage point.

 _"What the hell is she doing?"_  Sakura thought in frustration as she did what she was told.

Sakura and Shikamaru's right arms moved in unison. Ino sat down hard into the chair directly behind her. "This...this shouldn't be possible," she said with confused awe.

 ** _"Dammit, Ino! WHAT shouldn't be possible!"_**  Sakura and Shikamaru roared in frustration as they both stood up.

"You're in both bodies at once, that's what!" Ino said loudly and with mild panic.  _"What if she split her soul somehow? What if I can't fix it?"_

"WHAT!" Sakura didn't like that idea at all. She put her hands in the release seal. "Kai!" The whooshing feeling repeated itself and she felt herself whole once more.

Ino, having watched this, jumped up and went over to Sakura. "Are you back? Are you alright!" she begged.

Sakura rubbed her eyes with her palms. "Yeah, I think so."

Shikamaru was watching this in confusion. "Did something go wrong?"

Ino put her hand to her chin in thought. "I don't know  _what_  happened." She turned back to Sakura. "But we shouldn't do this again till we talk to my mom."

Sakura nodded.

Shikamaru stood to leave just as Ino's mother's voice came from downstairs. "Ino! I'm home!"

Ino hurried to the top of the stairs. "Ka-san!" she bellowed. "Can you come up here for a minute?"

"Just a second!" Ino's Mother yelled. Moments later footsteps sounded on the stairs. She poked her head in the door. "What's up?" she asked with a smile.

"Something weird happened when I was teaching Sakura Ishindenshin," Ino explained.

Curious now, Ino's mother stepped into the room and sat down in the armchair. "Oh?"

"She did the seals right, but..." Ino looked at Sakura and bit her lip, "she stayed in control of both bodies."

Ino's Mother's face took on a look of utter shock. "What?!"

"Is there an advanced level of Ishindenshin that I don't know about?" Ino asked.

Ino's Mother breathed tensely. "No. I've never heard of this before. You'd better ask Godaime-sama."

The teenagers all nodded and began to file out of the room. Just as Ino was about to exit her mother eh-hemmed. "And Ino?"

"Yeah?" Ino answered nervously.

"Don't teach your friends mind entering Jutsus without me or your father in the room," Ino's mother said in a warning tone and narrowed her eyes.

"Eh heh. Hai, Ka-san," Ino sweatdropped. She then quickly left the room.

* * *

"Interesting," Tsunade said from her behind her desk in the Hokage tower.

The teenager's mouths all dropped in shock. "Interesting! That's all you can say?" Ino said indignantly.

"This isn't entirely unexpected," Tsunade explained.

"It's...not?" Sakura said in disbelief.

Tsunade's face took on a slightly serious look. She put her elbows on the desk, interlaced her fingers and rested her chin on them. "Simply put, it's a bloodline limit."

Sakura's eyes widened. "What?! But my family doesn't have a bloodline limit," Sakura countered.

"Yes it does, on your Mother's side. It just happens to be very rare," Tsunade explained. "Your mother doesn't have it and neither did your grandmother. Your great aunt did though."

"But why didn't Mom tell me?"

"I suspect she doesn't know about it either," Tsunade answered with a frown. "The knowledge is passed down from parent to child on the day that child enters the academy, but as you know, your grandmother died in an accident a year before that day. And everyone else that could have told her died in the great shinobi war."

"Why didn't you tell her," Sakura asked, suddenly a little annoyed.

"I just found all this out not long ago myself. I found the information in the town records when I was looking for documentation on a missing nin this weekend."

Sakura's expression relaxed. "Oh."

"The most basic explanation of your bloodline limit, Sakura, is that you have two minds," Tsunade explained.

"Two minds?" Sakura repeated.

Ino suddenly snapped her fingers. "The Chuunin exam!"

"Huh?" was Sakura's answer.

"When you kicked me out of your mind. That's how you did it!" Ino proclaimed.

"You're most likely right, Ino," Tsunade commented. "This is also the reason Sakura's precise chakra control comes so easily to her. She has twice the concentration."

"So wait a minute. You're telling me I'm two people in one body?" Sakura asked with a little apprehension.

"No. You have two  _minds_. They're both you. They're just capable of independent thought. Like having a second set of eyes. Your main mind is the one you use the most. The other one, your 'inner Sakura' if you will, is mostly dormant unless your emotions are heightened or you consciously make use of it. It probably kicked in at Ino's house because you were nervous."

"How do I consciously make use of it?"

"Now that you know about it, you should be able to call on it at any time. Close your eyes. Try to find it," Tsunade instructed.

Sakura closed her eyes and concentrated. Almost instantly she felt another 'presence' there with her. As she looked deeper she saw what looked like a sort of 'chalk outline' of herself against the blackness of her mind. It just floated there, almost looking like it was sleeping. "I see it," she informed Tsunade, eyes still closed.

"Tsunade nodded approvingly. "Good. Now call to it."

Sakura screwed up her face in concentration. "Call to it. Right," she answered.  _"Ummmm. Wake up?"_  she requested, feeling rather stupid. She tensed a bit as the figure opened its eyes. It did nothing else though. "I woke it up, but it's not doing anything."

Ino snorted. "Maybe you should tickle it," she said with amusement.

"Shut up, Ino pig! You'll make me lose my focus," Sakura said out of the side of her mouth.

"Think of it as a sort of puppet. It won't do anything unless you move the strings. Try to push part of your consciousness into it," Tsunade directed as she stood and walked over to her student.

Sakura took a deep breath. "Right." She pushed a small amount of her mental energy at the 'Inner Sakura'. Suddenly she was looking at herself and Inner Sakura at the same time. "Whoa..."

Tsunade smiled in satisfaction. "Having control of your secondary mind allows you to think faster, concentrate better and gives you a decided advantage in both mind transfer jutsus and being able to see through even the strongest genjutsu. With a bit of practice, of course," she added quickly.

The Sakura-s smiled and walked toward each other.  _ **"I'm gonna like this,"**_  they said in unison.

"Why don't you release it for now. I have ninja coming in for their assignments at twelve."

Sakura nodded and pulled her mind back from Inner Sakura. She blinked a few times, then smiled. "That was incredible!" she exclaimed.

Tsunade grinned. "When you come over for training on Saturday we'll work on practical uses for it."

"And we can work more on that technique in the morning," Ino said with a grin.

Sakura looked at Tsunade. The Fifth gave a short nod. "That's fine. But make sure your mother is there to supervise this time."

The group of teens nodded and left the building. As they reached the entrance Shikamaru stopped walking. "You guys go on ahead. I'm gonna get something to eat," he directed at Sakura.

The girls shrugged and headed towards home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked that chapter. And don't worry. The last scene will be continued in the next chapter. This idea entered my head and just wouldn't leave me alone till I filled damn near an entire chapter with it. (Up until just after Sakura asked Ino to train her was part of my original plan. The whole bloodline thing was spur of the moment)


	16. Squeak

Sakura and Ino walked together on their way home since Sakura's house was on the way. "Neh, Ino?"

Ino turned her eyes up to her friend. "Yeah?"

Sakura frowned in thought. "What do you think of...um...Lee-kun?" she asked with her eyes facing skyward.

Ino's expression became sharp, then her eyes widened when she realized what Sakura's question indicated. "You're giving up on Sasuke-kun?" she said with disbelief.

Sakura coughed. "No...never. I just...It's just that...Ino, can you keep a secret?"

"On occasion," Ino answered truthfully.

Sakura decided that would have to be good enough. "Lee-kun...At Naruto's birthday party. He...he told me he's," she gulped. This was a hard thing to say, "in love with me..."

If Ino's eyes opened any wider they would've rolled out of their sockets. "Are you kidding?" she asked when she managed to remember to breath. Sakura shook her head. "Wow..." Ino replied in disbelief.

Sakura sat down with her back against the tree. "What should I do?"

Ino let out a puff of air. "Well...do you like him that way...at all?"

"See, that's what's driving me nuts. I don't know. He just keeps popping into my head when I don't want him to."

Ino cocked an eyebrow. "That's usually a sign of a crush," she said with as much tact as she could muster.

Sakura bit her lower lip. "No," she insisted. "I love Sasuke-kun."

Ino sighed. "You know Sakura, I realized something lately."

Sakura turned her head sideways in a curious glance.

"I think it was after everyone got back from going after Sasuke-kun. I went to visit them in the hospital. Naruto, Chouji...Shikamaru. They, especially Chouji, were hurt so bad. Chouji and Neji almost died. All...for Sasuke."

Sakura looked a bit stung. "It wasn't Sasuke-kun's fault. Naruto told me the seal made him crazy."

"I don't know. Maybe I'm starting to grow up, but...Sakura," a bit of pain entered her voice, "He's a dead man walking..."

Sakura's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

"I heard it all from Shikamaru. You've been Sasuke-kun's teammate for three years...you have to know about his clan."

"Of course I do," Sakura replied.

"There's no place for us in Sasuke's heart, Sakura. There never will be."

Sakura felt like she'd been punched in the stomach. She'd known it for a long time, of course, but she wouldn't admit it. "But..."

Ino placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "His heart is ice. If there's a girl out there that can melt it...it's not us."

Sakura angrily shoved Ino's hand off her shoulder. "I'm not going to give up on him!"

"I did..." Ino said.

"What?!"

"A few months ago. I just realized that even if we got together I'd wind up getting hurt," she said softly. A small smile lit up her face. "Besides, it's kinda fun checking out the other boys," she admitted as her smile widened into a wolfish grin.

Sakura's eyes widened a bit. "Not Shikamaru!" she said with an 'Oh please, not him' tone of voice.

Ino laughed. "He's kinda cute, but I have a feeling he's got a thing for that girl from the sand."

"Temari? Really?"

"Yeah. Seriously though. I'd give Lee a chance. At least he's interested," Ino said with a reassuring smile.

Sakura sighed. "I don't know..." She paused for a moment before speaking. "I need to change the subject...so who  _are_  you interested in?"

Ino thought for a bit. "Naruto's kinda cute," she said with an unbelievably straight face,

Sakura made a very funny sound. "R...really?"

"Yeah. Not that I could stand dating him though. He's way too damn loud for me."

Sakura's eye twitched.  _"You're just as loud as he is."_

"I wish Neji-kun wasn't such a stick in the mud. He's gorgeous," Ino continued with a small sigh.

"There really is a shortage of nice, mature boys in our village, isn't there?" Sakura mused.

"Yeah..." Ino stood up. "Well, we should get to your training."

"Yeah, let's go," Sakura replied as she began walking toward Ino's house. Ino followed behind. An image of Lee entered Sakura's mind. She shook it away in frustration.  _"What am I gonna do?"_  she thought with a sigh.

 

* * *

Naruto sighed in irritation for the fifth time in two minutes. He wandered over to his window and leaned on it with his right arm cushioning his forehead. "Dammit. If I get a nosebleed from that," he began, referring to Hinata's outfit, "Does that mean Sexy No Jutsu is gonna make me...?" his stomach got sick at the thought.

A knock sounded on his bedroom door. "Naruto-kun," came Nabiki's cheerful voice, "Supper's ready!"

"I'll be right  **there** ," Naruto replied. However, he was now more horrified than ever, for the last word of his sentence had sounded terribly high. "Oh no...It can't be..." he said with mild fear.

 

* * *

Tsunade couldn't stop chuckling.

Naruto was getting irritated. "It's not  **fu** nny, Granny."

Tsunade managed to catch her breath long enough to blurt out, "Yes it is!"

Naruto glared at her, keeping silent so as not to embarrass himself further.

Finally, Tsunade sniffed and wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes. "I'm surprised your voice didn't start cracking sooner. You are fourteen after all," she said with a slight 'after' chuckle.

Naruto sighed. "So how long w **ill**  this last?" he asked, gritting his teeth at cracking again.

"Um," Tsunade began, trying to think of a way to break the news to him, "Anywhere from a month or two...to a year," she said with a wince.

"A  **YEAR**?" Naruto squeaked in total terror.

"Yeah," Tsunade answered. Suddenly she squinted and rubbed her fingertips on Naruto's chin. "Hmm. And you might want to start shaving soon too."

Naruto's hand went to his chin. "Sh...shaving?" He said with the voice of someone who'd just been handed a death sentence.

Tsunade smiled. "Don't worry. I'm sure Sasuke will be going through the same thing soon."

Naruto snorted in contempt. "Heh.  _H **is**_  voice probably cracked when he was six," he grumbled.

Izumi poked her head into the room. "Naruto-sama. Hinata-chan is here to see you."

Naruto made a choking sound.  _"Not now!"_  he thought in dismay. "Tell h **er**  I'm n **ot**  here!" he croaked.

Izumi cocked an eyebrow at Naruto's voice change. "Hai, Naruto-sama," she said as she turned to leave.

"Izumi."

Izumi turned back to Tsunade. "Hai?"

"Show Miss Hyuuga into the living room," Tsunade requested.

"Hai, Tsunade-sama," Izumi answered.

"Granny Tsu **na** de!" Naruto yelled with an incredulous expression on his face.

"You can't just hide here until your voice stops cracking, kid," Tsunade answered.

"Oh yes, I can!"

"Naruto, go see your friend," Tsunade commanded as she sharply pointed a finger at the doorway.

Naruto sighed in anger and stalked off towards the living room.

 

* * *

Hinata looked up when she heard footsteps in the room. She stood up to greet Naruto. "Hello, Naruto-kun," she said with a smile.

Naruto waved and smiled cheerfully.  _"If I don't say anything, I'll be fine."_

"Would you like to get some ramen with me?" Hinata asked.

Naruto nodded.

Hinata raised her eyebrows. "What kind would you like?" she asked.

Naruto remained quiet, desperately trying to figure out a way to answer with body language.

Hinata's face creased in concern. "Naruto-kun? A...are you alright?"

Naruto smiled and nodded, glad to have avoided the ramen flavor question.

"Then why won't you talk?" Hinata prodded.

Naruto was quiet again.  _"Dammit! Can't she just ask 'yes' or 'no' questions!"_

"Is it me? Did I do something wrong?" Hinata asked, then bit her lower lip.

"N **o**!" Naruto answered without meaning to. At seeing Hinata's confused and surprised expression his stomach sank. He clapped his right hand over his forehead and eyes. "Oh no..." he groaned.

"Naruto-kun...Y...your voice..."

Naruto took his hand from his eyes and sank onto the couch. His teeth were gritted in anger at his stupidity.

"Are you sick?"

Naruto sighed. It would be a great alibi. Until it went on for a few months and she decided he was dying that is. "No."

"Then what...?" Hinata began as she sat on the couch next to him.

"My v **oice**  is cracking," Naruto answered in disgust.

Hinata straightened out of surprise. "Oh..." After some uncomfortable silence, Hinata spoke. "It...it's not that bad."

Naruto sighed. "I'm glad y **ou**  th **ink**  so," he grumbled.

Hinata frowned. "I still like you. N...no matter what your voice sounds like," she said with a slight blush on her cheeks.

Naruto made a small smile. 'Thanks," he answered and he turned his head toward hers. His heart skipped a beat. Hinata was wearing denim shorts and a v-necked t-shirt. He gulped and suddenly found himself staring at her lips. His eyes widened and he turned his head away taking in a sharp breath.

Hinata was confused at Naruto's strange behavior but shrugged it off. "So...do you still want to go to the ramen stand?"

Naruto forced himself to look back at the pretty girl next to him. "Yeah," he said with a smile.

Hinata smiled. She took his hand and the two teens walked out into the golden light of the setting sun....

 

* * *

Sakura frowned as she walked around, using inner Sakura, in Shikamaru's mind.  ** _"Okay...Shikamaru's mind is very very dull."_**  both bodies complained in unison.

"At least you can finally open the doors," Ino said in a tired voice. They had been up since four in the morning, practicing. Ino had a mission slated to start not long after sunrise so if they wanted to work on Sakura's training, it would have to be early.

"Can I go back to bed now?" Ino's mother asked with a yawn.

"Hai, Kaa-san," Ino confirmed with a sleepy smile.

Ino's mother stood and stretched. "Good night girls," she said with a wave and another yawn.

Ino turned to Sakura. "Well, you're as ready as you can be. When are you gonna do it?"

"Kai!" Sakura said, releasing the jutsu.

Shikamaru stood up and worked the kinks out of his neck.

"Right now. We don't have any missions, so he's probably still in bed," Sakura explained.

Ino nodded. "Good luck, then."

Sakura nodded. "Nm."

"I'm going to take a shower before our mission. Have fun, Sakura," Shikamaru said with very little emotion.

Once Shikamaru was out the door Ino turned to Sakura. "I'm gonna get a few more minutes sleep."

Sakura nodded. "Night, Ino," she said with a wave. As she walked out of Ino's house she noticed the sky had begun to brighten.  _"Better hurry. I don't have much time."_  With that thought in mind, she broke into a run...headed for the Hokage estate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boy oh boy. That chapter was fun. :Evil grin: Please review. :)


	17. Dream Walk

Sakura stared through the early morning darkness at Tsunade's estate. In all her planning to 'visit' Naruto's mind, she'd forgotten about getting past the guards.  _"Maybe if I just tell them I'm here for training. It_ _ **is**_ _Saturday, after all."_ She took a deep breath and walked towards the front entrance, trying as hard as she could to look casual.

A guard dropped his 'rock' henge once Sakura was halfway up the walkway. "Good morning, Sakura-san. What are you doing here before nine?" he asked with a guarded smile, knowing full well she could be an enemy in disguise.

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd just come over early. Is that okay?" Sakura answered with a winning smile.

"Genma!" called the guard.

The jounin appeared in a cloud of smoke. "What's up, Shinji?" Genma asked nonchalantly.

"Can you watch her while I speak with Tsunade-sama?" Shinji asked.

"Nm," Genma replied.

Shinji disappeared, reappearing about ten minutes later looking a bit stressed out. "Tsunade-sama said to ask you what Naruto's favorite ramen is," he said as he turned to Sakura.

Sakura half-rolled her eyes. "Everything."

Shinji nodded in approval. "You may wait in the living room."

Sakura smiled. "Thanks," she said, heading toward the front door.  _"Damn, that was close."_

Sakura entered the house and sat on the couch. After a short while, she stood up and headed in the direction of the bathroom. Once she was sure she was out of sight she made a beeline for Naruto's room. She moved silently, realizing that Naruto's room may have been guarded as well.

As she came within sight of Naruto's room she saw Kakashi there, leaning against the wall reading that book of his.  _"I can use this,"_  she thought.

"Sakura," Kakashi called out without looking up from his book, "do you need something?"

Sakura flinched in irritation.  _"Dammit. How does he do that?!"_  She eh-hemmed. "Hai, Kakashi-sensei," she answered, walking out from behind the corner. "I need to talk to Naruto. It's kind of important."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Well then, don't let me stop you. He needs to get out of bed anyway," he answered as he turned a page in his book.

Sakura smiled and went into the room, mentally breathing a sigh of relief as she went. She had to stop herself from giggling when she saw Naruto. The blond, loud-mouthed ninja was sleeping with his head hanging off the foot of the bed. She smiled, then remembering what she was there for, bit her lip.  _"Naruto...I hope you can forgive me,"_  she thought in regret.

She stared at her sleeping friend for a moment more.  _"Okay, Sakura. Calm down. Get in, get the information, get out,"_  she thought as a lump formed in her throat. She made the seals. "Ishindenshin no Jutsu!" she whispered. She felt the now familiar whooshing sensation as her second mind moved from her brain to Naruto's.

Sakura stared into the darkness.  _"Alright. Ino said to visualize doors."_  Suddenly a long hallway appeared before her. She nearly took a step forward when she heard a drop of water from behind. Whirling around, she saw a wet cement floor and what looked like a giant cage. Sakura walked slowly toward it.  **"This must be where Kyuubi was sealed,"**  she said, in a shaky voice. She was cold and nearly terrified just being where the demon had once resided. Feeling like she would no longer be able to breathe if she stayed, she spun on her right heel and hurried off down the hallway.

As she walked among the doors the knot in Sakura's stomach grew tighter and tighter.  **"This won't hurt him. This won't hurt him,"**  she chanted in an effort to calm her nerves.

Sakura tried each door she came to. They all opened easily. She was getting frustrated since she knew the memories she was looking for would be behind a locked door. She turned around from trying the latest door and saw something that made her blood run cold.  **"N...naruto?"**

There, in front of Sakura, was indeed Naruto, but he looked very different. His clothes were black and red, his hair longer and wild looking and his expression...was very similar to Sasuke's. "Just what the fuck are you doing in here?" the Naruto said in a steely voice.

Sakura shivered uncontrollably. **"Naruto...I...I...Just...just needed to see...what r...really happened,"** she stuttered, near tears.

"And what the  _fuck_  makes you think you have a right to know, you stupid bitch?"

Now the tears flowed freely down the pink haired girl's cheeks.  **"Naruto, what's going on? You're not like this. This can't be you,"**  she choked.

"Of course it's me!" the Naruto snapped. "Who the fuck d'you think it is?!"

" **But, but your hair...and your clothes..."**  Sakura's eyes snapped wide.  _"I get it...this is just a piece of his personality. He doesn't actually know I'm here,"_  she thought with an exhale of relief.

"OI! You gone deaf?!" Anger Naruto yelled impatiently.

Sakura took a deep breath.  **"I don't have time for you,"**  she said as she held back her tears and walked away.

Anger Naruto's face creased in anger. He charged Sakura, slammed her against a wall and raised a kunai to her throat. "Just who do you think you are?" he hissed. "You sure as hell had enough time to come in here and screw with my head!"

Sakura was in trouble and she knew it.  _"No...If Naruto kills me in here, my mind will go into shock,"_  she thought in panic. Remembering her training with Tsunade, she gathered a massive amount of chakra into her fist. She hauled back, slugged him as hard as she could, opened one of the doors, shoved him inside and slammed it shut. She just managed to slap a seal tag on the door before feeling a huge force hit it from the other side.

Again and again, the door shuddered from the force of Anger Naruto's hits. "Just wait till I get out of here you bitch! You are fucking dead!" he raged.

Trying desperately to block out the voice of Anger Naruto, Sakura continued down the hall.

 

* * *

If the knot in her stomach had been bad before, now it was positively squeezing the breath out of her. She tried another door, it wouldn't open.  **"Finally,"**  she breathed. She used her chakra lockpick and opened the door to the memory. When she opened it she saw something she didn't expect.

What appeared to be a four-year-old Naruto was running up to a young male chuunin with a drawing of a rabbit and some flowers. He stood in front of the chuunin and proudly held up his masterpiece. "Look what I made for you Miroku-nee-san!"

Sakura watched with a sick feeling in her stomach as Miroku slapped the drawing out of Naruto's small hands. "Get away from me you piece of shit! I'm only watching you because Sandaime-sama ordered me to!" he yelled angrily as he stalked over to the window so he could ignore the stunned boy.

Sakura covered her mouth and began to cry as Naruto's expression crumpled. Tears began to flow down his cheeks. After a brief moment, the small boy fell to the floor, wailing with as much pain as a human voice could muster.

Sakura rushed through the door and ran to Naruto, but as she tried to hug him her arms passed right through. So all she could do was watch him. Soon she couldn't take it anymore and ran from the 'room'. After shutting the door she slumped to the floor of the hall and sobbed.  **"Naruto..."**

* * *

Kakashi glanced up at the clock on the wall _. "Hmmm. She's been in there quite a while...And it's awful quiet."_  His eyes widened.  _"They wouldn't...!"_  He shook his head and mentally slapped himself.  _"You've been reading that book too much Kakashi."_  After a short pause, he looked at the door again. "Still...I should check on them." He eh hemmed. "Sakura, Naruto. Is everything alright?"

"Yes!" Naruto and Sakura said in unison.

Kakashi frowned a little but shrugged and went back to his reading.

 

* * *

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief.  **"Thank God. I thought he was gonna come in here,"**  she said as she tried another door. She unlocked it and saw a memory of herself making fun of Naruto before they became a team. Wincing, she quickly left the 'room'.

She pulled on the next door...no luck. Only two more doors down, she found another lock to pick.  **"Hmm. There seem to be more locked doors the further I go."**

Sakura paused a moment before opening the next locked door. She was beginning to dread what was behind these memory barriers. She sighed and pushed the door open...

"Sakura?"

Tentatively Sakura turned around at the weak sounding voice...and the bottom dropped out of her stomach. In front of her was what appeared to be another aspect of Naruto's personality. This Naruto's hair was the normal length, but had patches cut out of it in several spots. His clothes were ripped and dirty and he had numerous cuts and bruises on the exposed parts of his body.  **"It's not Naruto, It's not Naruto,"**  she chanted.  **"You must be his despair,"** she said as she began to walk away, determined not to get into another conversation with someone who wasn't really Naruto.

Despair Naruto grabbed Sakura's wrist. "Sakura...why are you here? It...It doesn't make sense. Don't you hate me?" he asked.

Sakura closed her eyes in emotional pain.  **"Of course not,"**  she answered, turning around.  **"You're my best friend,"**  she said, giving him a hug.

Despair Naruto looked confused. "But...I don't have any friends," he said with a hollow tone.

" **Yes, you do! Me, Sasuke, Lee, Hinata..."**

"No," Despair Naruto said, cutting her off, "that's not right. I'm alone." He smiled in a way that frightened Sakura. "Look what I found," he said, pulling a small silver object from his pocket.

Sakura's eyes widened.  **"A...a box cutter? Wha…What are you gonna do with that?"**

Despair Naruto smiled grimly. With one quick motion, he slashed his left wrist.

Sakura's body trembled and her mouth opened, but her scream wouldn't come out. She could only stare at the blood pouring from the open wound. Her eyes filled with tears as he slashed the other wrist.

Despair Naruto raised his wrists to eye level, staring at the blood. "There's so much...isn't there?" he said sadly.

Sakura's scream found its voice as Despair Naruto raised the box cutter to his throat and ripped it across his jugular. She turned and ran from the scene as fast as her legs would carry her.

As Sakura became smaller and smaller in his vision Despair Naruto sighed, watching his wrists close back up. "It didn't work...it never works..." he said with disappointment.

 

* * *

By now, Sakura was extremely jumpy. She almost didn't want to open the next locked door she found, but she used her chakra pick anyway. The sounds of fighting filled her ears as Naruto and Sasuke came into focus. Apparently, Sasuke had just spread the curse seal over himself.

She watched the battle in horror, fighting back the urge to make them stop. Suddenly Sasuke's fist was through Naruto's chest. Sakura screamed. Blood rained down on the water like red tears. She noticed Sasuke had a cruel smile on his face and was going on about how he had actually been aiming...for Naruto's heart.  **"No..."**  she said as she stumbled backward and fell to the ground.  **"NOOOOOOOOOOO!"**

* * *

Kakashi jumped at the sound of Naruto and Sakura screaming. He threw the door open. "Sakura! Naruto!" As soon as he saw them he knew what had happened.  _"But how are they both screaming?"_  he wondered. Throwing that thought aside he grabbed Sakura from behind and put her hands together in the release seal. "Kai!" Sakura's body relaxed and Kakashi caught her as she fell unconscious.

From the bed, Naruto groaned and opened his eyes. "Sakura?" He noticed Sakura's head leaning to the side as though she'd been knocked out. "S **a** kura-chan!" he shouted as he rushed to his friend's side. He looked up at Kakashi. "What happened to her!" he said with fear.

More guards came rushing into the room, followed by a tense-looking Tsunade. "Naruto!" She turned to Kakashi. "Hatake, what the hell is going on in here?!"

"Apparently, Sakura went into Naruto's mind," Kakashi reported grimly as he laid the girl on Naruto's bed.

"What?!" Tsunade said loudly. She sighed through her teeth and turned around. "Idiot," she said as she looked at Sakura, shaking her head.

"Why would she want to go into  **my**  mi...?" Naruto trailed off as he realized the answer to his own question. "The fight...Between Sasuke and me...She wanted to see it for herself."

Tsunade was confused. "Why in the seven hells would she want to see that?"

Naruto sighed and used his pajama sleeve to wipe away some of the sweat that had formed on Sakura's forehead. "I didn't tell you everything about the fight."

Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

Naruto swallowed, the barest hint of his newly-forming Adam's apple bobbing as he did so. "Sasuke used the Chidori and put a hole through my chest."

Tsunade sucked in a shocked and horrified breath.

"He...he was aiming for my heart." He ignored the look of wide-eyed rage on Tsunade's face and continued. "I managed to block it just before it hit and it went through my lung instead. Sakura found out that he put a hole through my chest. I told her it was an accident." He glanced at Sakura. "But I guess she didn't buy it."

"And she decided to go into your mind because she knew you would never tell her the whole truth," Tsunade finished for him. She sighed heavily and slid her palm over her forehead. "I'll take her to the hospital. Naruto, come with me," she commanded as she scooped up the unconscious Sakura.

* * *

As they jumped over the rooftops in the early morning light Naruto's stomach churned as he thought of the many different memories he prayed Sakura hadn't seen.  _"I wish I'd paid more attention when Iruka-sensei told us about memory blocking jutsus,"_  he thought. "Tsunade-no-baa-chan?"

"Yes?"

"Will she be alright?"

Tsunade sighed. "She should be. As long as she screamed because of the memory you told me about and not something worse."

"What do you mean...worse?"

"Something in your mind may have made her mind think she died..." Tsunade said grimly.

Naruto gasped in horror as the two ninjas landed in front of the main doors of the hospital.

 

* * *

Naruto was sleeping in a chair, which was balanced on two legs with the back against the wall and dangerously close to falling. On the bed next to him Sakura slept soundly.

There was a knock on the door to the room. Gravity won as Naruto was startled from his light sleep and he unceremoniously fell to the floor in a heap. "Ow!"

The door opened and Hinata walked through. She made a small, distressed gasp at seeing her crush on the floor. "Naruto-kun!" she exclaimed as she ran over to the boy and offered him her hand.

Naruto froze for a second before talking Hinata's small hand in his own. Suddenly the temperature of the room seemed to climb a few degrees. Even though she was in her jacket outfit today, the memory of her in her new clothes was still there. "Hinata-ch **an** , thanks,' he said nervously.

"How is she?" Hinata asked as she removed her jacket and placed it on the nightstand.

Naruto's heart beat a bit faster now that Hinata was in just her shirt and capris. "I don't know," he answered dejectedly. "Baa-chan says if something really bad happened to her in there...that she might not wake up."

A gasp escaped Hinata's lips as her hand flew to her mouth. After a moment of stunned silence, she put a comforting hand on Naruto's shoulder. "It's not your fault."

Naruto's expression clouded over. "Isn't it?" He put his head in his hands. "If I'd cared about learning how to lock my bad memories she wouldn't have found anything that could do this to her."

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata answered softly. Before she knew what she was doing she wrapped her arms around him.

Naruto was surprised at the sudden close contact but made no move to break it. He simply relaxed his body and stayed there, letting the world around them melt away, if only for a little while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love those two. :) And for those of you who don't know (Heck, I didn't know before I researched it for this story) a boy's Adam's apple doesn't form until his voice changes. In fact, it's the reason why their voice cracks. Just in case you were wondering why I said 'newly formed Adam's apple'.


	18. You Need To KNow

It had been nearly two weeks since Sakura had fallen unconscious and Naruto had been there nearly all day, every day. Sasuke stopped in for an hour or so daily, as did Hinata. Lee had wanted to be on constant vigil, but his current mission had kept him away. Tsunade came in at the end of visitor's hours to make Naruto go home.

Naruto snored loudly as Tsunade carried him home on her back. She glared backward at the latest bellow of noise to assault her ears. "This kid could give Jiraiya a run for his money," she said to no one.

Naruto blinked his eyes rapidly as he awoke and wasn't all that surprised to find himself being carried home. "Hey, Baa-chan," he greeted with a yawn.

"Hey, Brat," Tsunade replied, and then was quiet for a few moments. "I've been doing some thinking...After Sakura wakes up, I want to announce your adoption."

Naruto was instantly more alert. "Do you think that's a good idea?"

"I also plan to tell them about the death of Kyuubi. Why the hell Sarutobi let the villagers think you were anything more than human is beyond me. I intend to set the record straight. I know I won't be able to change the minds of everyone...but if I can at least get them to think a little about the way they've treated you, then that will be enough for now," Tsunade announced, stopping and letting Naruto down from her back as she finished.

"But..." Naruto began as his feet touched the ground.

Tsunade turned around and put a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "You are my son. I will have you treated with respect," she said with a warm smile.

Naruto smiled back and nodded. "Thanks." The two began walking again. "Baa-chan?"

"Hai?"

"I'm sorry," Naruto said as he stepped over a branch that had fallen on the path.

"For what?"

"I lied to you...about why I didn't want you to adopt me at first."

Tsunade stopped walking. "What do you mean?"

"I wasn't afraid of you messing up being Hokage to keep me safe."

"What was it then?"

"I thought you'd treat me like a kid. I didn't want a bunch of new rules."

Tsunade sighed. "Naruto—and I'm sure you know this by now—I will never try to change the way you live your life," she replied, smiling as she finished. "I think you've done a pretty good job of raising yourself. You're kind, happy, thoughtful and, when it's important at least," she said with a laugh, "very responsible. I doubt I could've done a better job with you."

Naruto beamed with pride. "Thanks."

Tsunade ruffled Naruto's hair. "You're welcome. Now, let's go home."

Naruto nodded in affirmation and mother and son walked on to their home together.

 

* * *

Sakura's head hurt. She moaned and forced her tired eyes open.  _"Where?"_  Her vision went in and out of focus. She saw a life monitor.  _"The hospital?"_  With some effort, she turned her head to face the opposite direction. She saw a few fuzzy figures standing around, talking to each other. One of them was obviously Lee. No one else wore that much green who was their age. She saw one of the figures turn to face her direction.

"Nani?!" Naruto's eyes widened. "Baa-chan! Sh **e'** s aw **ak** e!" he squeaked, pointing at Sakura excitedly.

Sasuke did a double take at hearing his brother's voice go up a few octaves.  _"When the hell did his voice start cracking?"_  he wondered. He pushed it aside for the moment, due to the situation.

" _Naruto,"_  Sakura thought with a small amount of fear.

Naruto and Lee rushed over to Sakura's side. "Sakura...can you hear me?" Naruto asked in desperation.

Sakura swallowed. Her throat was extremely dry. "W...water..." she croaked.

Naruto's eyes filled with tears of joy. "You got it," he said happily. He grabbed a cup from the water cooler and began to fill it.

Lee helped Sakura to a sitting position. She took the water Naruto held out for her and drank it in one gulp. "Arigato," she said to Naruto, her voice sounding a little better.

Sasuke moved into where he could see Sakura's face. "Sakura...how are you feeling?"

Sakura's eyes went as wide as dinner plates. "G...Get away from me!" she screeched, using all her available strength to scuttle backward to the wall at the head of the bed.

Sasuke's face took on an expression of confusion. He looked at Naruto and was surprised to see a look of understanding in his eyes. "Sakura...what...?"

"NO!" Sakura screeched again, covering her face with her arms. "NO...noooo...ooo," she begged, breaking down into sobs.

Naruto sat down on the bed and wrapped his arms around Sakura in an attempt to calm her down. "Sakura-chan, he's not gonna hurt you."

Sakura rocked a bit as she cried. "N...Naruto...I...I'm so sorry. I...I wanted to know what...what really..."

"Shhhhh. I know...I know. I don't care about that now. I'm just glad you're back," Naruto said in a soothing voice.

"H...how could he? You...you're his best friend. How could he a...aim for your heart?" Sakura cried.

Sasuke's throat tightened painfully. _"Tsunade-sama told me something scared her...but she never said..."_

Lee, meanwhile, was staring at Sasuke in disbelief.  _"He...he tried to kill Naruto-kun? Why?"_  He wondered. He wanted to hold Sakura but felt it wasn't his place at the moment. Instead, he turned to Sasuke. "What is this, Sasuke?" he asked angrily.

Sasuke closed his eyes tightly and sighed. "It's none of your business," he said through his teeth.

Lee glared at Sasuke. "Anything that hurts Sakura-san this badly is my business."

"Sasuke...tell him," came Naruto's voice from the bed.

Sasuke looked at his brother, incredulous. "What?" he questioned in a low voice.

"Tell him. I'm tired of secrets. If I'd told Sakura-chan about it a long time ago, this wouldn't've happened," Naruto said with regret.

Sasuke sighed in angry defeat. "There is another level to the sharingan, an ultimate level."

"Ultimate level?" Hinata asked from behind Tsunade.

Sasuke sat down on a chair near the wall opposite the bed. "It's called mangekyou. It allows a person to use genjutsu so powerful; they can kill someone inside their own mind."

Everyone's eyes widened. Sakura was even interested enough to slow her crying and listen a little.

"The only way to awaken the mangekyou is to...kill your closest friend..." Sasuke said in a pained voice.

Everyone in the room sucked in a breath, eyes wide with disbelief. Lee spoke with disgust. "You tried to kill the person you care most about...for power?"

"According to Itachi, what causes the mangekyou to form is the pain of extreme loss. Loss caused...by your own hands." Sasuke looked at Naruto. "I'm sorry—Even if what happened back then was mostly because of the seal it's no excuse," he said sadly.

Naruto looked down. "Seal or no seal...I knew you didn't  _want_  to kill me. You thought you  _had_  to." Sasuke looked at Naruto with surprise. Naruto continued. "And that's part of the reason I fought so hard to get you back. I didn't want you to go through more pain."

Sasuke's face fell, his mouth hanging open in an 'O' shape. "Naruto..." he said once he found his voice.

Naruto sighed, and then his expression looked as though he had decided something. "Excuse me, Sakura-chan," he said as he released the girl that he'd been holding. He looked up at Tsunade. "Baa-chan, I need you to get Neji, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Kakashi-sensei."

"Why?" Tsunade asked.

"I want to tell my friends...everything," Naruto replied, his voice filled with trepidation.

Tsunade's eyebrows knitted together. "Are you sure?"

"Hai," Naruto answered with more confidence.

Tsunade nodded. "Alright."

* * *

Shikamaru yawned as he sat down in the plush armchair near the window. Kakashi leaned against a wall and Neji stood in the middle of the room with his arms folded.

"Thanks for coming, guys," Naruto greeted solemnly. He took a deep breath. "I...have some things I need to tell all of you." He closed his eyes and took a calming breath before continuing. "You all know about when Kyuubi attacked the village." Everyone nodded, except of course those who knew what was coming. "You were lied to...Kyuubi wasn't killed. He was sealed," Naruto gulped, "Inside me..."

Neji's eyes widened. "What?"

"You're honestly telling me you didn't know?" Shikamaru asked in disbelief.

Everyone turned to stare at the lazy shinobi. "How did you...?" Neji inquired.

"It wasn't that hard to figure out. You can't kill a youma, not directly anyway. You have to seal it inside a living being. One with a chakra system advanced enough to hold it. A human is the only logical choice. The older a chakra system is the more likely it will reject such a large and inhuman chakra so the person creating the seal would need a newborn baby for the container. Naruto was the only person our age that all the adults in the village seemed to hate." He shrugged. "Simple, really."

Everyone stared slack-jawed at Shikamaru. After a moment, Tsunade eh hemmed. "Go ahead, Naruto."

Naruto nodded, somewhat amazed that not a single person had turned on him, even for an instant. "Two months ago, when Orochimaru took me, I was...cut open. He...peeled my skin back so Kyuubi couldn't heal me."

Neji gritted his teeth and Hinata looked a little nauseous from the memory.

"Sasuke pushed my wound together and Kyuubi was able to seal it, but it used too much of his chakra. He died," Naruto said as though he were sorry the Nine-Tails was dead.

Even Shikamaru showed surprise. "But...that shouldn't have been enough to kill a youma that powerful."

Tsunade folded her arms. "Not by itself, no. I've been researching the jutsus Orochimaru used on Naruto. They are designed to remove seals, but they also have the side effect of corrupting the flow of chakra in the being residing within the seal. Essentially, Kyuubi's own chakra poisoned him. The combination of that and using an enormous amount of power to heal Naruto apparently proved fatal."

Shikamaru frowned in thought. "Makes sense."

"Kyuubi left me a 'going away present'," Naruto said as he began to mold some chakra.

Everyone watched in amazement at Naruto's new chakra color. However, Tsunade, Sasuke, Sakura, and Hinata were confused. The chakra wasn't yellow. It was a swirling mix of red and blue. "What the hell?" Tsunade questioned.

Naruto opened his eyes when Tsunade spoke. He noticed the new colors and stared at them. "What...happened?"

Neji turned to Tsunade. "What is it?"

"It was yellow just yesterday. Not to mention it shouldn't be possible for it to be two colors at once," Tsunade replied with a frown.

"What does it mean, Tsunade-sama?" Hinata asked.

Tsunade frowned in thought. "I don't know. I'll research it when I get home." She let out a puff of air. "Naruto, I believe you have a few more things to say?"

Naruto nodded. Naruto scratched the side of his face in embarrassment. "Tsunade-no-baa-chan...adopted me," he said with a smile.

"Congratulations, Naruto," Neji said after the momentary shock wore off.

"Hmpf. You were better off before," Shikamaru said with a wry smile.

Tsunade stalked over to Shikamaru, holding up a fist. "What did you say?!" she said dangerously.

Shikamaru cringed. "It...It was nothing," he replied, waving his hands protectively in front of his face.  _"Geez, how troublesome,"_  he thought as Tsunade walked back to her previous position.

"Anyway. I also found who my parents were a few weeks ago," Naruto said quietly.

Except for Tsunade's, all eyes were suddenly fixed on Naruto. "Naruto-kun, that's wonderful!" Hinata cried cheerfully.

"Who are they? Have you met them yet?" Sakura asked eagerly.

Naruto's face fell. "They're...um...they died when I was born," he answered, his voice sad.

Hinata made a tiny gasp. "Oh, Naruto-kun..." she said as she bit her lower lip.

"It's okay," Naruto said, giving Hinata a small smile.

"What were their names?" Sakura asked, gently.

"My dad's name was Minato..." Naruto began before being cut off by a strange choking sound that came from Kakashi.

Kakashi looked as though he'd seen a ghost. "What is it, Sensei?" Sasuke asked with concern.

Kakashi's beloved book simply fell from his hands as he stood and walked slowly toward his blonde haired student. When he got to the bed he reached out a shaking hand and touched the side of Naruto's face. "I...I always thought you looked like him," he said in a choked voice.

Sakura was confused. "Sensei?"

Kakashi pushed his forehead protector up and away from his sharingan eye. "But how? Sandaime told us you were dead."

Naruto was shocked to see Kakashi's eyes filled with tears. "It was a lie. He did it to protect me," Naruto informed him.

"So you...you really are Yondaime's son?" Kakashi said as though he wasn't still sure he believed it.

Immediately following Kakashi's question everyone in the room stared, positively bug-eyed, at Naruto. "You're the son of the FOURTH?!" Lee asked in shock and awe.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah."

Kakashi gripped Naruto's shoulder affectionately. "It's...like a part of him is back from the dead," he said, hurriedly wiping his tears away with his other hand. Suddenly his expression turned dangerous. "Jiraiya..."

"I already took care of it, Hatake," Tsunade said with a hand on Kakashi's shoulder.

Naruto looked at Tsunade in confusion. "What did Ero-sennin do?"

Kakashi stared at Tsunade in disbelief. "He doesn't know?"

Tsunade shook her head. "Nm mm. I want Jiraiya to tell him himself."

"Tell me what?" Naruto questioned, growing impatient.

"Ask Jiraiya. I want him to be the one who sees your reaction to it," Tsunade said icily.

Naruto growled a sigh.

Doctor Tokiha came into the room. He saw Sakura sitting up and smiled broadly. "She's awake," he said cheerfully.

Sakura smiled and nodded.

"Well then, how about you all clear out of here so I can check her over?" Doctor Tokiha requested.

"Bye everyone," Sakura said with a wave.

Sakura's visitors returned her goodbye and walked out the door, except for Naruto and Lee. Naruto smiled at Sakura. "Glad you're okay," he said with a grin.

Sakura smiled. "Thanks."

"Later," Naruto said with a mock salute.

Once Naruto was out the door Lee turned to the girl he loved. "I don't know what I would have done...if I could never see that smile again," he said as he lovingly touched her cheek.

Sakura paused for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Lee-kun...

"It's alright," Lee said softly, "I know you don't feel the same," he said with a small smile. "I'll see you later." As he turned around to leave he felt Sakura's hand grab his.

"Lee-kun...I can't make any promises," Sakura said gently, "but don't give up on me yet..."

"Sakura-san?" Lee questioned, trying desperately to quell the bit of hope that was entering his heart.

"Just...give me some time to think," Sakura explained.

"O...okay," Lee said in mild confusion. He looked at the door. "Well then...I have to...get back to my training...Ja," he said nervously.

"Ja...Lee-kun."

Lee smiled and left the room. Sakura stared out the window, watching some kids playing ninja tag.  _"It was so simple back then,"_  she thought. An image of Sasuke entered her mind, but his adorable smirk was quickly replaced by the murderous grin he had worn in Naruto's memories, making Sakura wince.  _"Sasuke-kun, I don't...can't love you anymore. But I'm not sure I know how to move on."_

"Alright, Miss Haruno. Let's see if you're ready to go home," said Doctor Tokiha.

Sakura nodded. "Alright."

As Doctor Tokiha began the usual stages of a routine physical Sakura's mind wandered to the memory of Naruto telling everyone about Kyuubi.  _"I'm so glad everyone took it so well. He's already been through so much."_  Of course, she knew exactly what had gone through Neji and Lee's minds. She had had the same thoughts when she had been told the truth...

_((Tsunade moved to sit behind her desk. "There is something you must know before you go on this mission. What I'm about to tell you is not to leave this room. Understood?"_

" _Hai, Hokage-sama," Sasuke replied._

" _The Kyuubi that attacked Konoha fourteen years ago...was not destroyed as you were told. It was sealed...inside Naruto," Tsunade explained._

" _What!?" Sakura and Hinata squeaked in unison._

_Sakura's breathing became slow and quiet as she absorbed what she'd just been told. After a moment she noticed Sasuke didn't seem at all surprised. "Sasuke-kun, you knew?" she asked in wide-eyed disbelief._

" _Hai. Naruto told me, after he stopped me from going to Orochimaru," Sasuke said, his eyes looking at the floor._

" _Why didn't he tell me?" Sakura asked, her voice rising a bit in pitch._

" _I saw him use the Nine-Tails when we fought. I asked him what it was and he told me. I think...he didn't tell you because he was afraid of how you'd react," Sasuke said, raising his eyes to Sakura's._

_Sakura bit her lower lip._

_Tsunade eh hemmed and the teens turned their attention back to her. "We have received intelligence reports that Orochimaru plans to extract Kyuubi from Naruto and transfer it to himself. This would not only increase Orochimaru's power, but also kill Naruto in the process," she said gravely._

" _N...no!" Hinata said loudly._

" _You three will be accompanied by Kakashi and a team of anbu. They will act as a distraction while you get Naruto out," said Tsunade._

" _But, we're not enough to take on Orochimaru!" Sakura exclaimed._

" _We're hoping that the distraction will be enough that you won't have to," Tsunade explained. "Now, as for the reason you were told about Kyuubi. Should Orochimaru make even the slightest miscalculation when attempting the needed seal transfer jutsus, you may wind up facing the Kyuubi itself..." ))_

Sakura shuddered at the memory as Doctor Tokiha removed the blood pressure cuff.

"Well, Sakura. I think you can go home tomorrow morning. For now, why don't you try to get some sleep?"

"Hai. Thank you," Sakura replied.

Doctor Tokiha smiled and left the room. Sakura laid down, her skin relishing in the smoothness of the cool pillow. As she closed her tired eyes one thought came to her mind. And for some reason, she found it comforting.  _"I think...I really do like...Lee-kun..."_  With that thought, she drifted off into a restless sleep.


	19. Old Wounds

 

Naruto paced up and down the floor in Tsunade's office. His stomach was positively bursting with butterflies as he sighed for the millionth time.

"Naruto, you're getting on my nerves," Tsunade grumbled. Naruto had been pacing for the larger part of a half hour.

Just then Shikamaru poked his head into the room. "Excuse me, Tsunade-sama. We're ready," he informed her.

Naruto stopped pacing and turned a few shades of green. Tsunade saw this and gave him a hug. "It'll be okay," she said warmly. She released him and stood up. "Now remember, wait here until I send for you."

Naruto took a deep breath and nodded, silently reminding himself that it was  _not_  possible for his heart to burst through his chest.

Tsunade walked out the door and headed for the roof of the Hokage tower. As she went to open the door at the top of the stairs she herself took a deep breath, then turned the knob and stepped out into the bright afternoon sunshine.

The murmuring in the crowd ceased almost immediately when Tsunade appeared at the edge of the roof. The fabric on the sides of her Hokage head gear fluttered in the gentle breeze as she watched the crowd for a moment, hoping to discern the general mood.  _"Well...it's now or never,"_  she thought.

"Thank you, everyone, for coming out here on such short notice. I have some announcements to make and I'm sure at least one of them will make you all very happy." She paused for a short moment before continuing. "To the children gathered here today. It is time for you to know that the Kyuubi was not killed in the battle fourteen years ago. It was sealed inside a human container by the Fourth Hokage. And that container was Naruto." A flurry of whispers broke out among the children who hadn't already known. Tsunade waited for them to die down a bit then held up her hand to silence them completely.

"I have more to tell you. The Kyuubi…has recently died," Tsunade informed the crowd. The reaction...was not what she expected.

All at once there was loud cheering from about half the crowd. Both from those who believed Naruto  _was_  the Kyuubi, and from others who didn't. But there were also a good number of people crying. Some people were stunned into a horrified silence and still others seemed angry for some reason.

"Please calm down everyone," Tsunade said loudly. It took a moment, but the crowd became quiet. "On a happy, personal note for me, I recently adopted one of the village orphans," she said with a wide smile.  _"This will be interesting,"_  she thought. She turned around and nodded her head at a jounin who was near the door. Unseen by the crowd, Naruto came out the door and stood just out of everyone's line of vision. "I would like to introduce you to my son." She turned her head and waved someone forward. Naruto walked up and stood next to Tsunade. The reaction from the people of Konoha was explosive.

Some people were ecstatically happy (Although confused) and about half the crowd looked like they had just been shown the most horrible monster they could think of. From at least a quarter of the people came angry shouts of protest. Tsunade heard  **"What the hell is this?!"** ,  **"LIAR!"**  and,  **"You said he was dead!"**  above the roar of the crowd.

Tsunade surveyed the angry ones with a venomous stare. She glanced at Naruto, who looked like he was about to hyperventilate. "SILENCE!" she roared. A few last retorts were thrown, but eventually, everyone stopped talking for fear of provoking Tsunade. "Now ALL of you will listen to me!" she yelled angrily. She took a moment to calmly stare at the crowd as if daring them to say something. "This boy, no matter what you may think, is not now, nor has he ever been the Kyuubi! He has also never been a danger to  _any_  of you! When I first came back to this village, I learned a lot about Naruto's past—enough to make me disgusted and appalled at a good majority of the people here." The eyes of some of the angry audience members softened a bit.

"He has done nothing to any of you...except keep your loved ones safe for the past fourteen years," she informed the people, glaring. "And what I told you is true. The Kyuubi  _is_  dead. Orochimaru took Naruto a month and a half ago, wanting to transfer the Kyuubi to himself, but wound up accidentally killing Kyuubi in the process." Smiles returned to some of the previous complainers. "Now...I know it will take time for you to see Naruto differently...Some of you may never let go of your hate. But I hope that someday, the people of this village will once again become the people I remember. A people who are kind, who help strangers on the street and who have love in their hearts for the people who need it the most," she said glancing at Naruto. "That's all I have to say...dismissed." She put a hand on Naruto's shoulder and together they walked away from the stunned crowd.

TenTen stood stock still, her mind still reeling from what she'd just been told. She looked at others that were still at the base of the tower. Many people looked deep in thought, some looked disgusted but she was surprised to see that nearly half of the people around her looked...sad.  _"They probably realized they've been acting like serious assholes,"_  she thought in contempt. She looked up at a clock on one of the surrounding buildings. "Better go train." With a final glance at the Hokage tower, she disappeared in a puff of smoke, earning complaints from the people closest to where she had been.

* * *

TenTen walked onto her favorite training field and was disappointed to find someone already using it. It was even worse that that person happened to be someone she thought of as extremely gorgeous. She didn't have a crush on him, but she couldn't help blushing when she was in his presence.

She watched as he blew a tree to shreds with Chidori and felt her heart skip a beat.  _"God, I love strong men."_  she thought with a playfully predatory smile as she walked towards him. "Hi, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke blinked back his exhaustion and turned to face the one who had interrupted him. "Sorry, but I'm busy at the moment, TenTen," he said respectfully. Truthfully, she was the  _only_  kunoichi he respected. She didn't swoon whenever she saw him like the others and, she was strong. He may have changed a bit since the waterfall battle, but he still had little patience with weak people.

TenTen looked around the training field. Several trees had been mutilated.  _"Wow..."_  she thought. "Oh...Mind if I wait here?"

Sasuke frowned as he thought for a moment. "Do what you want," he answered.

TenTen nodded and sat down on a log a safe distance away.

Sasuke pulled out a few kunai and flung them at a tree he had previously prepped with tiny targets.

As she twirled a kunai on her right index finger TenTen watched his technique with a frown.  _"Hmm. Only ninety-four percent accuracy,"_  she thought. Sasuke threw another kunai and TenTen winced.  _"GAH! He was off by half an inch!"_  she thought as she fidgeted by twirling her kunai faster. With each throw Sasuke made that wasn't completely dead center she found it harder and harder to stay sitting. Finally, she flung her hands forward in frustration, accidentally throwing the kunai in the process. It whizzed by Sasuke's right ear and landed perfectly in the middle of the target he had been aiming for.

" _What the hell?"_  Thought Sasuke, who had been blocking her view of the target at that moment.  _"She did that without being able to see the target...How?"_ He turned to see TenTen standing stick straight with a nervous grimace on her face.

"S...Sorry. It was a reflex," she explained, scratching an itch on her finger that had been the product of friction from spinning the kunai for so long.

Sasuke cocked an eyebrow and looked back at the tree. "One hell of a reflex," he said with a mild interest in his voice.

TenTen smiled. She thought for a moment. "Um...want some tips?"

Sasuke frowned. "You can't teach better aim. Only practice can do that."

TenTen scratched the back of her neck. "Um, actually...your technique is wrong."

"Excuse me?" Sasuke replied indignantly.

"You need more snap to your wrist when you throw. You arc it too much," TenTen replied carefully.

Sasuke's frown deepened. "I don't need help," he said firmly.

_((An eight-year-old Sasuke gritted his teeth in frustration. He had missed his target by a whole two inches. He heard a cough behind him and groaned inwardly._

_Itachi stood about six feet away. He had his arms folded and was shaking his head. "You need to relax more, Sasuke."_

" _If you would help me practice I'd be better by now!" Sasuke retorted._

" _Hm," Itachi remarked as he shook his head and walked away._

" _ **Damn him. Why won't he teach me?!"**_ _he thought angrily as he watched his brother walk away.))_

Sasuke made a short, irritated hiss through his teeth at the memory.

TenTen saw Sasuke's expression but decided not to comment on it. She closed her eyes in defeat and sighed. "Have it your way then. I'm gonna go find somewhere to train. Watching you is gonna drive me nuts," she replied with a small laugh.

Sasuke watched her go. Once he was sure she was a good distance away he turned to the target and threw a kunai; snapping his wrist just a little more than usual. The kunai hit dead center. He folded his arms. "Hm," he remarked with an intrigued expression.

 

* * *

Three weeks later Naruto sat on the ground in the middle of the Hokage training field, waiting for Jiraiya.

_(("When he gets there, tell him I said to tell you the truth," Tsunade said firmly.))_

Naruto frowned and sighed.  _"What did she mean by 'the truth'?"_  he wondered. It was at that moment that the person he'd been waiting for appeared on the back of a medium-sized summon frog.

He looked around for a moment before turning to Naruto. "Where's Tsunade? She said she wanted to see me."

"Um, actually. She said she wanted me to talk to you," Naruto said with a bit of confusion. "She told me she wants you to tell me 'the truth'," he said as he made air quotes with his fingers.

Jiraiya stiffened, realizing he'd been tricked.  _"Damn you, Tsunade,"_  he growled in his mind. He sighed loudly and sat down next to the boy, cupping his chin in his right hand as he thought of what to say. "What I'm about to tell you...may make you hate me for the rest of your life..." he said sadly.

"Hate you?" Naruto echoed in confusion.

Jiraiya put up a hand in order to ask Naruto to be quiet. "As you know, Minato was my student. He was like a younger brother to me. On the day he became Hokage, I couldn't have been prouder. By that time he'd already married your mother. She was one of the most amazing kunoichi I've ever seen—Younger than me, but already the captain of my anbu squad." He paused, taking a moment to calm his emotions a bit.

"On the night Kyuubi attacked she was eight months pregnant with you. As she was getting ready to join the fight I arrived at the Hokage residence with a message from Minato. He wanted her to stay out of it, but..." ::Pause:: "She wouldn't hear of it. She loved Konoha so much. When I tried to block her from leaving she threw me into a wall. I ran out the door as soon as I could think straight. By the time I got to the field...she had already..." He wiped away some unshed tears. "She was mortally wounded...There was nothing anyone could do. Her injuries caused her to go into labor. I...I was...I was the one who delivered you."

Naruto's eyes widened in shock. "Y...you...d...delivered me?" Naruto stammered. He suddenly felt like he'd been handed yet another family member. He smiled widely.

Jiraiya saw Naruto's happy smile and became sick to his stomach. "Naruto..." The seriousness in his voice made Naruto's smile falter a bit. "That's not all of it. You see...there were only three people who knew you hadn't died at birth. Minato...Sandaime...and me..." he finished with as much regret as human eyes could hold.

This news shattered Naruto's feelings of family toward the aging Sannin like the most delicate of crystal. "You...you...you KNEW?!" Naruto yelled, his fists balled so tightly that his nails drew blood. He stood, moved in front of Jiraiya and punched him in the face, knocking him over. "W **HY**?!" he screamed, years of loneliness and pain all coming to the surface in an instant. "WHY DIDN'T YOU T **AKE**  ME WITH YOU?!"

"I...I couldn't. I had no idea how to raise a baby," Jiraiya said with nothing but sadness in his voice as the tears welled up again.

Naruto's whisker marks became a bit more defined as his breath came in angry puffs through his teeth. "That's just a BULLSHIT EXCUSE!" he raged, punching Jiraiya again; this time knocking him back a few meters. Tears began to fall from his cerulean blue eyes. "YOU COULD'VE GOTTEN B **OOKS**!" he screamed, backhanding Jiraiya. "YOU DIDN'T WANT ME!" The tears flowed down Naruto's face in force now and by this point his voice was cracking frequently. "IF Y **OU**  HAD YOU WOULD'VE FOUND A W **AY**!"

Jiraiya's hatred of himself grew with each angry syllable. He knew Naruto was no match for him, but he didn't care. He knew each punch Naruto threw was well deserved and so he simply let the boy punish him.

It wasn't until Naruto created twenty or so bunshins of himself that Jiraiya began to wonder if he shouldn't try to stop him. "Naruto!"

"SHUT UP! I...h **ate**...YOU!" With that last word, Naruto's voice dropped in pitch. In his new, deeper voice, he screamed out his attack. "U!" Eight of the bunshins slid in and kicked Jiraiya into air. "ZU!" A second group was thrown into the air by the first group. Jiraiya was propelled even higher by the second barrage of kicks. "MA!" Ten more clones used the tops of the surrounding trees as launching points and shot themselves at him. They kicked the surprised man to a deadly height. "KI!" Naruto screamed as he led the final group of clones in for the finishing move. "NARUTO RENDAN!"

With tears streaming down his face Jiraiya watched as six Naruto feet came down from the sky above him and drilled into his torso. Blood sprayed from his mouth as his body shot toward the ground.

Jiraiya's head was spinning and he was barely able to think as he summoned Gama Bunta. The great frog appeared and Jiraiya landed with a thud on his head.

Gama Bunta rotated his eyes upward just before Naruto landed in a crouching position near Jiraiya. "Hmm? What the hell is going on here, Brat?" he asked as Jiraiya stumbled to his feet.

Naruto didn't hear Gama Bunta. His eyes turned red as he ran over to Jiraiya with a kunai in hand.

Jiraiya barely managed to shield his face with his arms as Naruto brought down the weapon.

Gama Bunta frowned and used his tongue to pluck Naruto off of his head then transferred him to one of his large, webbed hands. "OI, BRAT!" Gama Bunta said with irritation as he maneuvered Naruto so he could see his face. "I asked you a question!" he demanded firmly.

Naruto thrashed around violently in an effort to escape as he yelled curses at the giant frog. "LET ME THE FUCK GO! I'M GONNA KILL THAT PIECE OF SHIT!"

Gama Bunta decided he wasn't going to get any answers out of Naruto in his current mental state. "Jiraiya, explain this."

Jiraiya took a moment to tie off the cut on his arm with some medical wrap before answering. "It's...personal. Let's just say I deserved what I got," he said sadly as he closed his eyes in emotional pain.

Naruto kept struggling and making animalistic screams at the top of his lungs. "GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Jiraiya watched him with the heaviest of hearts. He sighed deeply, reached into his hip pouch and pulled out a small jar of green powder. He poured a small amount into his hand and blew it at his former student and friend. Naruto's eyes rolled back into his head and he hung limply in Gama Bunta's grasp.

Jiraiya replaced the top of the jar and returned it to its hiding place. "He should wake up in about an hour." He turned his back to Naruto's sleeping form. "I won't be back. Could you tell him when he wakes up that I'm...sorry," he said in a chocked voice.

Gama Bunta frowned in thought. "Hai," he agreed.

Jiraiya nodded numbly and jumped away into the forest. He hadn't known this much pain since the death of his prized student and friend. He felt like he'd lost him all over again. After a few minutes of running, he stopped on a very wide tree branch. His hand covered his eyes as he slid down the trunk into a sitting position. His sobs of despair were heard only by the creatures of the forest...and the wind...

...TO BE CONTINUED

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That one was...hard to write.
> 
> If you get sick of waiting for me to update this on here you can read the rest (Plus book 2) here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/2052337/1/Colors-of-Life-and-Death-Book-1


	20. Believe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is the freaking energizer bunny. It's 4853 words. Don't get used to that chapter length though. It's rare I take so long to find a stopping point. 

 

 

Gama Bunta stared at the boy that was lying on the ground impatiently. "Dammit, brat. Wake up already," he grumbled. Suddenly he had an idea. He took a long drag on his pipe and blew it into Naruto's face.

After a second Naruto began coughing. His eyes opened and he sat up, gasping for air. He looked up at Gama Bunta. "What the hell was that for?" he asked bitterly as he folded his legs into a criss-cross.

Gama Bunta cocked an eye ridge. "You were sleeping too long," he said bluntly.

Naruto rested his face in his right hand and sighed heavily through the splayed fingers. "Where's Ero-sennin?"

"He left, Kid. He said to tell you he won't be coming back...and that he's sorry," Gama Bunta replied gently.

Naruto's lips shook slightly as his eyes filled with tears. Now that the object of his anger wasn't within punching distance his pain took over. He lowered his head and dropped his hands to the ground. He then alternated between sobbing loudly and punching the ground in angered frustration.

Naruto's pitiful crying made Gama Bunta suddenly unsure of what to do. He wasn't good at comforting people. He had always left the comforting of his children to his mate. Just as he was about to attempt putting a webbed finger on the boy's shoulder he saw Tsunade running towards them from the other side of the field. He looked up at the sky.  _Thank you,_ he thought.

"I saw you from my office window!" Tsunade said through sucking in lung-fulls of air. She looked at Naruto. "What happened?"

"Jiraiya..." Gama Bunta answered, hoping she'd know what that meant since he sure as hell didn't.

Tsunade expression fell. "Oh..." she remarked softly. She swallowed and knelt down next to her son.

"Graaaaaaa!" Naruto cried in anguish as his fists slammed into the ground again.

Tsunade bit her lower lip to keep herself from crying. "...Naruto?" she put her hand on his shoulder. He flinched and slapped it away. She gritted her teeth.  _"Dammit. Why did I think he could handle this without me?"_

"If you won't be needing me, I think I will return home," Gama Bunta informed Tsunade.

Tsunade nodded and Gama Bunta disappeared. She turned her attention to Naruto, who had gone back to crying, and watched him for a brief moment before surrounding the distraught boy with her arms.

Naruto's body tensed when he realized Tsunade was hugging him. He put all his strength into trying to escape but she refused to let go. "Leave me alone, dammit!" he choked out in frustration.

Her eyes opened when she felt Naruto go slack in her arms.  _"He looks so small,"_  Tsunade thought as she began to stroke his hair in a motherly fashion. "Shhh. Shh, sh, sh, shhhhh. I'm here."

Tsunade's maternal words stirred something in Naruto. It was the second time she had said something like that. He suddenly wished with all his heart that he'd had this comfort when he was younger. He barely thought it before he said it. "Kaaasaaan..." he cried.

Nothing could've described the feeling of her adopted son saying that word to her. She held him ever closer. "Naruto..." she said warmly, "I'm here...I'm here." It was then that she realized just how much she loved being a mother.  _"I'm here...For as long as you need me..."_

* * *

As Tsunade, Hinata, Sasuke, and Sakura rounded the corner and the Hokage estate came into view they saw the person they were looking for. Sakura stared at Naruto, who was lying on the roof. "How long has he been up there?"

Tsunade sighed. "About six hours now. And nothing I say makes a difference." She paused for a moment. "He won't even come down for ramen," she said with a frown.

"Nani?" Sakura said sharply.

"That  _is_  serious," Sasuke remarked.

"I was hoping maybe you kids could snap him out of it," Tsunade explained with a 'please do this' expression.

Hinata nodded. "We'll do our best."

Tsunade smiled. "Thanks," she replied. _She's really gotten more confident since Naruto began to notice her._

The teens nodded and headed off to the roof.

 

* * *

Naruto lay on his back, staring up at the sky. He just didn't want to do anything. He had been betrayed and could think of nothing else. He heard them when they landed on the roof, but he didn't acknowledge their presence.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata said once they reached him. No answer came.

"Naruto, we were gonna go to a movie."  Pause. "....wanna come?" Sakura asked, making sure she stayed at least five feet away from Sasuke. Again, no answer.

Both girls looked at Sasuke as if to say 'Your turn!'. He sighed in defeat. "C'mon, Dobe. We'll treat you to some ramen," he offered. Still nothing.

Finally, Naruto sighed. He still didn't turn his head, but he did speak. "Look...I know you guys are trying to help, but I really wanna be alone right now."

"Are you sure, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked tentatively.  _"His voice changed. He...he sounds amazing,"_  she thought as heat rose to her cheeks.

"Yeah..." Naruto said with a sigh.

Sakura chewed her lower lip. It was strange to see her usually happy, hyperactive friend like that.  _It's not natural. Like we've been sucked into an alternate dimension or something,_ she thought. "Well...if you want to talk," she offered.

"Nm," Naruto replied solemnly.

Sasuke turned and began to walk away. Sakura waited a few seconds to be sure they wouldn't wind up walking together on the way back to the main road then also started walking. Hinata stayed where she was. "Are you coming?" Sakura asked.

"Um...you two go ahead...I'm going to stay here," Hinata answered softly.

Sakura smiled slightly. "Okay." She put a hand on Hinata's shoulder and leaned in close. "Good luck," she whispered.

Hinata nodded appreciatively and the other two left. "Naruto-kun?"

"I thought I said I wanted to be alone," Naruto replied, still not looking anywhere but the sky.

Hinata swallowed, wondering what on earth had possessed her to be so bold. "I...I know. I won't say anything, but do you mind if I just sit with you?"

Naruto sighed, realizing he probably wasn't going to win this one. "Whatever..."

"Thank you," Hinata said before sitting down. She turned her head to look at her crush.  _I wish I knew what to say to make you stop hurting,_  she thought sadly.

Naruto tried not to think of the girl sitting next to him, but was failing miserably.  _Dammit. If I run off she'll probably follow me. Why the heck did I tell her she could stay?_  After lying there in silence for nearly fifteen minutes Naruto turned his head toward Hinata. Her hair caressed her face as a gentle wind swept the rooftop and her eyes looked to the sky as though she were searching for advice from the heavens. Naruto felt a strange peace come over him as he watched her. Somehow, and he couldn't figure out why for the life of him, her just being there was making him feel better.

"Neh...Hinata-chan?" Naruto said quietly.

Hinata made a surprised sound and turned to Naruto. "Yes, Naruto-kun?" she said gently, worried that if she said something wrong that Naruto might go back to not talking.

"How much did Tsu...Hahaue tell you about what happened?" Naruto asked in a somewhat flat tone.

"Not much. She only said that something Jiraiya-sama said upset you."

Naruto sighed. On one hand, he liked that Tsunade had respected his privacy, but on the other, he really wasn't in the kind of mood where he wanted to have to explain about something painful. "Well...long story short, I found out that he knew who I was all this time..."

"You mean, he knew you were Yondaime's son?" Hinata asked in wide-eyed disbelief.

"Nhm..."

The two teens were quiet for another minute or so. "He left me here, Hinata," Naruto broke the silence bitterly. "Left me to rot in a village full of people who wouldn't be sad to see me cut into a thousand pieces..." His face creased in anger and his fist clenched at his side.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata said with tears in her eyes.

Naruto sat up and pulled his knees to his chest. "When I was little...I never thought... that there was someone out there who knew who I was. In fact, until I read Chichiuei's letter, I thought I'd be an unknown orphan forever."

Hinata wanted so badly to hug him, but she decided it wasn't the right time. Instead, she sat and quietly listened to Naruto speak.

"Ero-sennin said Chichiuei was like a brother to him. How can he say that and not take me with him?" Naruto growled.

"E...Ero...sennin?" Hinata stuttered, blushing.

Naruto realized she'd never heard his 'nickname' for Jiraiya. "Sorry...It's an insult I call Jiraiya. He's a massive pervert," he said with disgust.

Hinata suddenly found the tiles on the roof very interesting. "Oh..." she said in a tiny voice.

Naruto's face flushed a bit at Hinata's embarrassment. It went away quickly though.

"M...maybe he was scared..." Hinata offered, playing with one of the sections of hair framing her face.

"Huh?" Naruto questioned. He didn't get what she was talking about right away due to getting off track a moment before.

"Jiraiya-sama...Maybe he didn't think he c...could raise you right..."

"He could've gotten books. It isn't that hard," Naruto replied bitterly.

"It was all I could think of...sorry..." Hinata said sadly.

"It's not your fault."

"I know. It's just...I hate that I can't think of anything to make you feel better," Hinata said with a sniff.

Naruto closed his eyes, sighed and re-opened them. "Hinata-chan," he said as he gave her a hug. "Thank you."

Hinata gulped nervously but returned the hug. "Anytime, Naruto-kun." She released Naruto. "Would...you like to get some ramen? My treat," she said with a sweet smile and her fingers tented.

Naruto noticed her tenting her fingers, but it seemed different somehow. Almost—coy.  _She's so...cute._  He blushed a little and blinked back his thoughts as he considered her offer for a moment. "Sure," he answered. Hinata smiled widely at his answer and he suddenly felt a little light-headed.

Hinata stood up. "Let's go then," she said, offering Naruto her hand.  _I can do this...It's just his hand,_  she thought in an effort to calm herself.

Naruto gingerly took the hand that was offered and his heart skipped a beat.  _What is_ _ **wrong**_ _with me? Grabbing her hand never bothered me before!_  He stood up, using her hand as leverage and was about let go, but his hand wouldn't obey him.

Hinata noticed that Naruto hadn't let go of her hand yet and began to feel her face heat up. "N...Naruto-kun?"

Hinata's words seemed to snap his brain back to logical thought and he quickly let go of her hand, a slight pinkish tinge on his cheeks. He cleared his throat. "Um...sorry. I was, erm, thinking about something," he replied.  _Yeah...like how cute she is in that tank top,_  his subconscious teased. "Shut up!" Naruto said out loud without realizing it.

"Huh?" Hinata asked, with confusion on her petite face.

"N, nothing...Let's go. I'm starved," Naruto said with a smile that he hoped looked normal.

Hinata was still confused but nodded anyway. "Okay."

* * *

Naruto and Hinata walked into Ichiraku to find Sakura much too interested in how many directions she could push the pearl onion floating at the top of her bowl of miso soup.

"Sakura-chan?" Naruto called out as he scanned the surrounding area. "Where's Sasuke?"

Sakura put down her spoon and leaned her cheek against her fist. "Not a clue," she replied with a shrug. "Not that I really wanna be around him anyway."

"Huh? But you were up on the roof with him trying to cheer me up," Naruto pointed out.

"Tsunade-sama was asking me and Hinata if we could go with her to your house, then she saw Sasuke walking by and asked him too. I was trapped," Sakura sighed. "Besides, making sure you were okay was more important."

Naruto gave Sakura a small smile. "Thanks."

Sakura turned to him. "Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"I...I'm so sorry for..." Sakura began.

Naruto clapped a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Hey, I forgave you already. You screwed up. It happens," he said with a shrug. "I wasn't exactly thrilled that you did it, but I can understand why you did. It's okay." He gave Sakura a small smile to show he meant what he said.

A tear rolled down Sakura's face. "You're a good friend, Naruto...kun," she said as she smiled and wiped away the tear.

Naruto's eyes widened at the addition of 'kun' on the end of his name. "Not a problem," he said with a broad grin. He rubbed his palms together. "Now," he said, looking at Hinata, "how bout that ramen?"

Hinata giggled. "Right."

* * *

The next day Tsunade stood next to Sakura as she attempted to revive a fish from the brink of death. She frowned at the girl's lack of success. "Focus, Sakura. You've done this already. This one's only thirty more seconds past heart failure."

The green healing light surrounding Sakura's hands faded and disappeared. She let out a large puff of air. "I just can't today, Tsunade-sama. I'm too distracted."

"Do you think your enemies are going to care about your personal problems?" Tsunade scolded.

Sakura hung her head. "No."

"Alright then. Now,  _focus_!"

Sakura nodded and went back to curing the fish. In just a few seconds it was flapping all over the table. She smiled at her success and moved out of the way for Hinata. Tsunade picked up the first fish and handed it off to Nabiki, who had been standing in wait. "Take that down to the pond in the north garden."

Nabiki bowed. "Hai, Tsunade-sama."

As Nabiki walked off Tsunade grabbed another 'near death fish' off a towel on the floor next to her and put it on the table. "Alright, Hinata. Your turn."

Hinata nodded. Just then Naruto walked into the room with a huge glass of milk in the crook of one arm, a bag of cookies in the other and one cookie sticking out of his mouth. Everyone stared at him and he just grinned, his mouth still plugged up with the cookie.

Hinata couldn't help herself. She started laughing.

Tsunade sighed through her nose. "Naruto, you made her loose her...concentration," she tried her best to say without laughing. She failed. "Alright alright. I guess we can have a cookie break," she announced with a grin.

Naruto set down the milk and the bag and then ate the rest of the cookie that was in his mouth. After he washed it down with some of the milk he grinned again. "I knew you'd see it my way."

Tsunade picked up the fish and walked off into the kitchen with it, returning a moment later. "That one will be dinner," she said gesturing behind her. She picked up a cookie and dunked it, then sat down on the couch with Naruto. "You're doing extremely well, Sakura. You may be more talented then Shizune," she said with a smile.

Sakura smiled. "Thank you, Tsunade-sama."

"Which reminds me, you may have a chance to test out your new skills tomorrow," Tsunade informed her.

"Huh?" Sakura questioned.

"I received a mission for your team today. I'll tell you the details tomorrow though when I have all three of you here."

Sakura winced at the obvious reference to Sasuke.

Tsunade noticed Sakura's reaction and frowned. "It still bothers you that much?"

Sakura sighed. "Well...it's not like I hate him or anything. In fact, I still care about him...a lot. It's just that...every time he's near me I feel like I wanna run. I can't help it. I just keep seeing that look in his eyes from when he..." she trailed off, knowing she didn't need to finish the sentence.

"Hmm. Well, you're going to have to put all that aside for your mission," Tsunade informed her.

"I know. I can do that," Sakura promised.

"Good girl," Tsunade replied. She turned to Hinata. "I want you on this mission too."

"Huh? B-But what about Shino and Kiba-kun?" Hinata asked with confusion.

"Don't worry. You're not switching teams. But I want you to get more combat experience and Shino is on a mission with his father at the moment. I also put Kiba on a mission with Gai's team," Tsunade explained.

"Oh...okay," Hinata finished with a smile. She looked over at Naruto.  _I'll be on a mission with Naruto-kun,_  she thought as she blushed nervously.

Naruto noticed Hinata staring at him and felt his body heat up a bit. He swallowed and looked away, then suddenly stood up. "Tsunade no b...erm...Kaasan, I need to talk to you alone for a minute."

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow. "Sure." She stood up and turned to Nabiki, who had just walked in the door. "Nabiki, can you bring Hinata a new fish?"

Nabiki slumped a bit. "Maaaan. I just came back from the pond," she mock whined with a small smile.

Tsunade suppressed a laugh. "Move."

Nabiki sighed over-dramatically and trudged back out the door.

Tsunade smiled and turned to Naruto. "Alright, let's go."

Naruto nodded and headed into the dining room.

 

* * *

When Naruto and Tsunade entered the room they found Izumi setting the dinner table. "Izumi, shoo," Tsunade commanded with an up and down waving motion of her hand.

Izumi looked confused but complied anyway. "Hai, Tsunade-sama."

Once Izumi was out of earshot Tsunade and Naruto sat down at one end of the table. "So, what's up?" Tsunade asked as she rested her chin on her interlaced fingers.

Naruto sighed. "I need to talk to you...about Hinata-chan."

Tsunade's face broke into a wide smile. "Ahhhh. I see. What do you want to know?"

" _What've I done?"_  Naruto thought in mild fear. "Every time I'm around her I keep thinking how...cute she is," he said with a slight grimace.

"And the problem is...?"

"I'm still not sure how I feel about her. We've been hanging out a lot lately and I like her a lot, but... Ghaaaa. I'm so confused."

Tsunade laughed lightly. "You're fourteen, kiddo. It's normal."

"What should I do?"

"You know what I find interesting?" Tsunade asked suddenly.

Naruto looked confused. "What?"

"You claimed to love Sakura for so long and I've never seen you this flustered over her," Tsunade answered with an amused smile.

At this Naruto turned red as a tomato.

"Know why?"

Naruto shook his head.

Tsunade's expression lost its amusement and became more gentle. "Because Sakura was just a crush. I think Hinata is more than that to you," she explained.

"More?" Naruto asked.

"Mm-hmm. But I'll let you figure that out on your own. It's not something that should be told to you by another person," Tsunade said as she gave him a gentle hug.

Naruto sighed heavily. "I have another question."

"Oh?"

"Would…would it be alright if I changed my last name?"

Tsunade looked surprised for a moment but regained her composure quickly. "I don't think that's such a good idea"

Naruto frowned. "Well, Namikaze is my real last name isn't it?"

Tsunade nodded. "Yes, but Minato gave you your mother's maiden name to protect you. I want that protection to continue."

Naruto sighed in defeat. "Alright."

"Why don't we go back now? See how Hinata is doing with her fish."

"Okay," Naruto agreed.

 

* * *

Hinata barely noticed when Naruto and Tsunade re-entered the room, she was too busy concentrating.  _"Please,"_  she thought. Beads of sweat rolled down her forehead as she pushed the healing chakra into the fish.

After a few minutes of watching the girl struggle, Tsunade interrupted. "Stop, Hinata," she said.

Hinata looked ashamed as she stopped the flow of chakra. "I...I'm sorry, Tsunade-sama," she said, bowing her head in shame.

Tsunade walked over to Hinata. "Hey, you did your best." She sighed in thought. "In fact, I think we may need to change the jutsu a bit to suit the way you use your chakra." After a moment of thought, she said, "Hmm. Instead of blanketing the chakra, try pushing it through the tenketsu."

"Okay," Hinata replied, activated her Byakugan and proceeded to work on the same dead fish she had before.  _I can't fail...Not in front of Naruto-kun."_

"Hinata, you can't do anything more with that fish. I'll get you a new one," Tsunade said.

Hinata was so intent on helping the fish that she didn't hear her sensei. The damage was all repaired, but the fish was still dead.  _"Why isn't it working?"_  she thought in frustration. Suddenly her eyes widened...she had an idea.

"Hinata," Tsunade repeated, intent on tapping the girl on the shoulder to snap her out of it. As she reached out a white pulse of energy shot out from the fish...it started flapping. Hinata de-activated her Byakugan and smiled with pride. "H...how...? That shouldn't be possible," Tsunade asked, wide-eyed.

"W...well, I just thought of how the hospital uses those paddles to revive people, so I put some of my body's electrical current into the chakra," Hinata explained with an embarrassed blush.

 _This girl..."_  Tsunade thought. "Hinata, I want you to promise me that you'll never do that again," she said sternly.

The smile fell from Hinata's face. "Huh?" she said in confusion. Hadn't she done a good job? "Why?"

"The body has a  _lot_  less electrical current than chakra. Reviving a fish is one thing. If you use that technique on a human being...you'll die," Tsunade said gravely. Hinata made a small gasp. "I am declaring that jutsu as forbidden. You can't use it and you will not teach it to anyone. Is that understood?"

Hinata's face showed her disappointment. "Hai...Tsunade-sama."

"Even if you can't use it again, that was incredible Hinata-chan!" Naruto said suddenly, breaking through the gloomy atmosphere.

Hinata looked up at her crush and smiled. "Thank you, Naruto-kun."

Tsunade smiled. "Alright then. Aside from that, you should be able to use the normal healing jutsu just fine now." Hinata's smile widened. "Well, it's ten o'clock. I say we call it a night. I'll see you all here at two PM tomorrow."

The teens nodded and left the house. As they walked along the small forest road Naruto fell in step beside Hinata. "Neh, Hinata-chan..." he paused, realizing Sakura would hear what he was about to say. "Ano, Sakura-chan, could you walk on ahead? I need to talk to Hinata-chan."

Sakura smiled as though she had an idea of what he was going to say. "No problem." She put on a burst of speed. "See you guys tomorrow!" she called out over her shoulder.

After Sakura was out of earshot Naruto turned to Hinata and grabbed her hand. "Can we sit for a sec?" he said with a small blush.

Hinata looked surprised. "S-Sure."

Naruto led her over to a fallen tree a few feet off the side of the road. As they sat down he fought an urge to surpass Rock Lee in running speed. He was silent for a moment before looking up at the girl next to him. She was wearing an azure blue tank top and denim shorts that ended above the knee. The combination made his face feel hot. He swallowed and spoke. "I...I'm not sure if I'm doing this right, but I need to tell you s...something," he finished in a small voice.

Hinata suddenly felt nervous. "H...hai?" she said as began chewing he bottom lip.

Naruto saw her chewing her lip and was horrified when he realized he wanted to cover that lip, no...both lips, with his own. He quickly looked down to avoid staring at her mouth. He gulped. "I...I think you're...you're...cute..." he said.  _I can't believe I actually said it._  he thought, desperately trying to ignore the butterflies that were now headbutting the inside of his stomach.

Hinata couldn't believe her ears.  _Did he just say what I thought he...?"_  she thought in shock. She was amazed that she was able to get out the next word. "W...what?"

The bottom dropped out of Naruto's stomach.  _Oh God. She wants me to repeat it?_   he thought in horror. "I...think you're cute," he said with quite a bit more ease than the first time.

Hinata's mouth dropped open.  _"He did say it...Am I dreaming?"_  she thought, scarcely believing her own ears. Tears of joy filled her eyes.

Naruto's face took on a look of concern. "Did I...Did I do something wrong?"

Hinata shook her head rapidly. "N, no. I'm j…just happy," she replied, smiling.

A smile slowly spread over Naruto's face. Without even thinking about it he moved closer to her and wrapped his arms around her in a warm embrace.

Hinata felt herself stop breathing for a moment.  _H...he's hugging me...in_ _ **that**_ _way,"_  she thought, barely managing to fight the urge to pass out.

"Well it's true," Naruto said as he released the hug. Looking into her eyes, he suddenly felt a lot bolder. "I do think you're cute. I also think you're fun and smart...and I think, no, I  _know_...I like you."

Hinata could barely breathe. "I...I...a...anno..."

Naruto swallowed again. "Will, will you be...my girlfriend?" he said with flaming red cheeks and a tightness in his throat.

With eyes as wide as dinner plates Hinata promptly passed out. Naruto caught the flushed girl as she fell backward and rested her head in the crook of his right arm. "Hinata-chan! Oi!" he said as he shook her gently in an attempt to wake her up.

"I can't believe she just fainted like that," Naruto said as he sat there with her head resting in his arms, waiting for her to wake up. He felt very protective of her right then. As he reached down and began stroking her forehead her closed eyelids crinkled.

 _Oh no! I don't want to wake up yet,_  Hinata thought in despair as her eyes fluttered open. Those same eyes widened when she realized she was looking up into the gentle face of the boy she loved. "N...Naruto-kun?"

"Hey there," Naruto said softly.

Hinata sat up faster than she ever had in her life.  _So it wasn't a dream..._  After a moment of silence, she managed to look at Naruto. "I...I'm sorry I fainted."

Naruto let out a small puff of air. "I'm just glad you're okay," he replied. "Ano...so what do you think?"

Hinata stiffened, feeling woozy again, but willed herself not to faint a second time. "I...I would love to be your...g...girlfriend," she replied, fighting the urge to pinch herself.

Naruto smiled, most of his nervousness gone. "I guess that makes me your boyfriend then, huh?" he said as he moved over so he was sitting right next to her.

Hinata smiled in pure joy. "Y...Yeah. S...So what do we do now?"

Naruto's breathing became stuttered again as he stared into the young Hyuuga's two pearl-like eyes. His heart hammered in his chest and heat circulated throughout his entire body as he leaned forward...and kissed her.

Hinata's eyes widened for a second in surprise before she closed them and simply enjoyed the feeling of Naruto's lips pressing against her own. She felt a heat in her chest she had never known before. Nothing in the world existed except Naruto. Surprising even herself, she wrapped her arms around him. He took that as a cue and did the same.

After what seemed like an eternity Naruto broke the kiss and moved his face back a bit, wanting to judge her reaction. He saw that her eyes were closed and she had a dreamy look on her face. "Hinata-chan?"

Hinata reluctantly opened her eyes. "That was...amazing, Naruto-kun," Hinata breathed.

Naruto smiled. "Yeah...it was."

Naruto and Hinata stared at each other for a moment more before Naruto spoke. "It's getting late...we should get going."

"Y...yeah," Hinata agreed reluctantly.

They stood and Naruto held out a hand for his new girlfriend. She happily took it. As they walked along they kept stealing glances at each other and smiling.

Hinata had never felt more at peace in her life. She gave Naruto's hand a squeeze and leaned her head on his shoulder. The two walked like that the rest of the way home, ignoring the surprised and sometimes disgusted stares from onlookers. Only one thought was in Hinata's head as they neared her home.  _If this is a dream, I never want to wake up..._

...TO BE CONTINUED

* * *

Hope you guys liked that. I've been waiting and waiting for the right time to put that scene in. :)  
  


This art was drawn by the amazing [Charu-san](https://www.deviantart.com/charu-san). Please check out her Deviant Art page. She did the entire scene with them on the log as a doujin! :D 


	21. Into the Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please review. I love reviews! Thanks!
> 
> Ganshou literally translates to Magma.

Naruto yawned, sat up and scratched the back of his neck.  _"Damn. What time is it?"_  he thought as he turned his head toward the clock. "Eight-o-clock already?" He put on his indoor slippers and shuffled off to the bathroom.

 

* * *

 

As he gazed into the mirror he studied his looks.  _"I wonder what I'd look like with a ponytail?"_  he thought as he pulled back the hair that was hanging down at the nape of his neck.

A knock sounded on Naruto's bedroom door. "Naruto-kun! Breakfast!" yelled Nabiki's voice.

"Hai!" Naruto yelled back through the closed bathroom door. After he'd finished his morning routine he got dressed and headed downstairs.

 

* * *

As Izumi handed Naruto his bowl of breakfast-themed ramen he looked up at Tsunade. "Neh, Baa-chan?" 

Tsunade flinched at the use of Naruto's nickname for her but realized that it would probably take a while for him to stop using it completely. "Mm?"

"Do you think I'd look good with a ponytail?"

Tsunade choked a bit on her bite of sausage. "What brought that on?" she asked.

Naruto shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe a new look to go with the new voice?"

"Hmmm. You know what? I say go for it. I think it'll look nice," Tsunade answered with a wide smile.

Naruto smiled and slurped up some of his ramen.  _I better just go ahead and tell her. If Hinata and me just show up holding hands it'll be ten times worse,"_  he thought. After a few mouthfuls, he put his chopsticks on the table. "Baa-ch...Kaasan, if I tell you something, do you promise not to make fun of me?"

"I'll try my best," Tsunade said honestly.

Naruto took a deep breath. "I asked Hinata to be my..." For some reason, he felt too embarrassed to say the word girlfriend, so he simply put up his pinkie finger instead.

Tsunade's mouth hung open for a few seconds "Oh my God," she said with a grin as she folded her arms. "It's about damn time. I was starting to think you'd stay dense about her forever," she said with a laugh.

Naruto looked a bit irked at her comment.  _Dammit. I knew she couldn't resist._

"Of course she accepted," Tsunade predicted.

Naruto was still annoyed that she had laughed, but at least his mother hadn't teased him as badly as he thought she would. "Yeah," he said with a small smile.

Tsunade smiled broadly. "So..." she said with an eyebrow wiggled, "Have you kissed her yet?"

Naruto's cheeks reddened. "Baa-chaaaaan!" he yelled indignantly.

Tsunade chuckled. "Seriously though. Since you have a girlfriend now, I need to ask you a few, um...things," she said with some discomfort.

Naruto gulped. He didn't like the sound of that.

Tsunade let out a long puff of air. "I suppose there's really no easy way to do this...How much do you know about sex?"

Naruto's eyes increased in size tenfold. He also stiffened and turned bright red. "Do we...have to talk about  _that_?" he said, barely getting the words out.

"I need to have an idea of what I'm dealing with." Tsunade sighed. "Would it be easier if I just asked you 'yes or no' questions?"

Naruto nodded his head rapidly.

"Okay. Well, you obviously know the anatomical differences between the sexes so we can skip that part. Do you know the basic way sex works?"

Naruto swallowed and nodded his head.

Tsunade visibly relaxed and sighed. "Thank God. Um...are there any questions you want to ask me?"

At the realization that the talk was much shorter than he had feared Naruto relaxed a little. After his skin had regained a bit of its normal color he spoke. "Ummm," he managed in a small voice.

Tsunade scratched her temple. "Alright then, I just have one favor to ask you. Wait until you're at least sixteen for this and please only do it with a girl you love more than life itself. Sex with someone you don't love is empty and meaningless."

Naruto seemed to consider this for a moment. "Okay," he said with a small smile.

Tsunade chuckled, partially from relief and gave the boy a hug. "Thank you." She sat back up. "Anyway, let's finish breakfast. I have some paperwork I have to get to or Shizune will never leave me alone about it," she finished with a grumble.

Naruto nodded and the two resumed eating.

 

* * *

Tsunade yawned and glanced up at the clock.  _"Hmm, ten of."_  She looked down at the papers on her desk.  _"Good thing I'm almost done with this."_

As if on cue, ninjas began to come through the doors at that very moment. Naruto and company filed in after about five minutes and got in the assignment line. Just as their turn came around Hiashi barged into the office.

Tsunade stiffened. Although she respected his abilities, she had never cared for the man. "Hiashi?"

Hiashi looked over at Naruto and Hinata, who were holding hands and glared. He turned his attention back to the Fifth. "I need to speak with you on an urgent matter," he said as he walked up to the assignment table. "In private," he said in a low voice.

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow and frowned. "Alright, but make it quick. I have assignments to hand out," she informed him as she stood and gestured for him to follow her. The two walked into a small office that branched off the assignment room. Once she shut the door she sat down behind the desk at the back and waved a hand at the empty chair in front. "So...What do I owe the pleasure of this visit, Hiashi- _kun_?" she said in an insulting tone as Hiashi occupied the previously empty chair.

Hiashi gritted his teeth at the insult but bit his tongue. He eh-hemmed. "I came here to ask you about a rumor I heard this morning, but just coming here confirmed it," he said with a set jaw.

Tsunade looked at the ceiling in irritation. "Get to the point, kid. I don't have all day."

Hiashi's frown deepened, but he controlled his temper. "I want you to forbid your...son from seeing Hinata."

"Oh you do, do you?" Tsunade replied as she folded her arms.

"This has nothing to do with him having been the Kyuubi's container. That boy is a bad influence."

Tsunade was growing more irritated by the second. "How so?" she asked in a warning tone.

"He's rude, loud and uncivilized. I don't want Hinata associating with him. Even more than that...I don't want him wandering around town, in public, holding her hand," Hiashi said as though the idea sickened him.

Tsunade had had enough. She glared at him menacingly. "Naruto is kind, brave and a better person than you will  _ever_  be. And he may not be the most socially practiced person in the world, but at least he's not a pompous ass!"

Hiashi stood from his chair. "How dare you!" he said with balled fists.

"As far as I'm concerned, Naruto can date whomever he likes." Tsunade's hand shot forward and grabbed the front of Hiashi's outfit. She pulled him toward her so that she was inches from his face. "Count yourself lucky that there are people beyond that door," she whispered with a dangerously sweet smile.

Hiashi let out an angry breath as Tsunade released him. "You have no right to command what rules I lay down for my child!" he said angrily.

"I have every right. And be glad I don't involve myself further with your family's rules. Quite frankly, many of your "traditions" disgust me. Now get out of my sight," Tsunade commanded as she pointed at the door.

Hiashi gritted his teeth and left the room. As he walked past Naruto and Hinata he gave one final glare of anger before leaving.  _"Damn her."_

Tsunade came from the small office and resumed her position at the assignment table.

"W...what did my father say?" Hinata asked nervously.

Tsunade smiled. "Don't you worry about it. I straightened him out," she said with a wink.

Hinata looked unsure but nodded anyway.

"Now, what I have for you four is B rank." Tsunade handed Naruto a manila envelope. "Give that to Kakashi. Unfortunately, thanks to Hinata's father I don't have the time to explain the mission personally," she finished with a frown.

"Got it," Naruto replied as the four teens turned and walked away. Just as they were about to go out the door they heard Tsunade's voice.

"Naruto, I almost forgot. Come back here for a sec," she said.

The others looked at Naruto in question. He shrugged and walked back to his mother.

Tsunade gestured for Naruto to come in close. "I want you and Hinata in separate sleeping bags," she whispered.

Naruto grimaced. "What kind of pervert do you think I am?" he hissed back to her.

Tsunade smiled. "I think you're a fourteen-year-old boy, that's what. Now get out of here," she said as she pointed toward the door with her head.

Naruto swallowed and returned to his friends. "What did Tsunade-sama want?" Sakura asked

Naruto's face suddenly resembled a tomato. "Nothing," he said quickly. "Let's go."

 

* * *

Kakashi raised his eyebrows at the contents of the mission assignment envelope, which he had just finished reading. "Well, It looks like we are off to Ganshou city."

Sakura was instantly excited. "The capital?"

"Yup," Kakashi said as his eyes crinkled with his smile.

Sakura jumped up and jabbed a fist into the air. "YATTA!"

"Sakura-chan?" Hinata questioned, confused at her current teammate's reaction.

"It's a city, Hinata! Do you understand what that means?" Sakura answered excitedly.

Hinata shook her head.

"Dance clubs, ten screen movie theaters, all the best clothing shops, and karaoke bars!" Sakura said with a happy twirl as she finished.

Kakashi's eyes became more serious. "Sakura, we are going there to work, not play."

Naruto, who wasn't really interested in any of the things Sakura had mentioned, folded his arms and nodded his head with an affirmative, no-nonsense grunt.

Sakura turned to her blond comrade. "They have gourmet ramen shops," she said, hoping she could tempt him.

Naruto's eyes widened. "Ramen!" he said suddenly giving Kakashi the same pitiful look Sakura had a moment before.

Hinata giggled and Sasuke made a derisive grunt as he rolled his eyes.

Kakashi sighed. "Maybe we can stay a little after the mission."

"YATTA!" Naruto and Sakura yelled in unison.

Sasuke groaned and hung his head. "What's our mission?"

"We are to evict a gang that has moved in recently. Apparently, they're too much for the city police to handle," Kakashi explained.

"Ninjas?" Hinata asked.

"Well, they know a few techniques, but they're not a clan," Kakashi said with a shrug.

Sasuke smirked. "Heh. Godaime gave something that simple a 'B' rank?"

Kakashi frowned. "Never assume your enemy is weaker than you. That kind of thinking will get you killed."

Sasuke glared at his sensei.

Kakashi cracked his knuckles, earning a disgusted grimace from Sakura. "Now, go get your gear. I'll meet you by the city gates in twenty minutes."

"Hai!" the teens shouted as they shot off in multiple directions.

 

* * *

Naruto was a bit irritated that he was the last one to arrive. It couldn't be helped though. Tsunade's house was further from the gate than his apartment had been. "Yo!" he called in greeting.

Hinata turned around at her boyfriend's voice. "Naruto-kun," she said with a smile.

"Hey Hinata-chan," Naruto replied as he slipped his hand into hers.

Eyebrows raised all around. "Does this mean what I think it does?" Sakura asked hopefully.

Naruto nodded and blushed. "Yeah," he said as he scratched the back of his neck nervously.

"YATTA!" Sakura cheered. She gave Hinata a huge hug. "It's about time! Congratulations!"

Hinata smiled shyly. "Thank you."

Sasuke gave a nod of approval. "Nice work, Dobe."

Naruto twitched. "Can't you ever say something nice to me without adding an insult?"

"Hmph," Sasuke remarked with a smirk.

Naruto was about to make a retort when Kakashi interrupted. "Eh hem. We really do need to get going. It's a four-day walk."

 

* * *

The sun was beginning to fall lazily behind the horizon as Kakashi's team went about setting up their tents. "Naruto, hand me that stake over there," Kakashi instructed.

Naruto looked to where his sensei was pointing, grabbed the stake and handed it to him. He saw Hinata taking out her sleeping bag and suddenly Tsunade's words came back to him.  _(("I want you and Hinata in separate sleeping bags..."))_  Naruto's face took on a distinct crimson color as he shook his head in an attempt to rid himself of the heat building in his chest.

"Alright," Kakashi said as he stood up from finishing the second tent. "Sakura, Hinata, and Naruto. You take this tent. Sasuke and I will take the first one." The teens nodded and put their gear into their assigned tents.

 

* * *

Naruto was having a hard time sleeping. He hadn't been on a mission in almost three months, thanks to various factors, and it was driving him crazy that he wouldn't see any action for at least five more days. He turned his head to his right. Hinata slept soundly, her chest rising and falling with each gentle breath.

Naruto propped up his head on his right hand and just watched her sleep. It wasn't long before he found his breathing falling into her rhythm. His eyelids began to feel heavy and he fell into a peaceful slumber, Hinata having been the last thing he saw before he closed his eyes.

 

* * *

"Naruto-kun, wake up," Hinata said, gently shaking her boyfriend.

Naruto opened his eyes to see Hinata staring down at him. The morning sunlight was pouring through the open tent flap behind her, giving her an ethereal glow. He found himself unable to move or speak, for fear of losing that moment.

"Naruto-kun, are you okay?" Hinata asked with concern.

Naruto blinked backed his reverie and smiled. "I'm fine." He yawned. "Morning, Hinata-chan."

"Good morning, Naruto-kun. Kakashi-sensei is making breakfast," Hinata said, holding out her hand.

Naruto happily took Hinata's hand. "Great. I'm starved."

Hinata and Naruto left the tent and found their seats around the campfire. Kakashi handed out bowls and everyone dug in.

Sasuke was deep in thought as he ate his food. He'd been trying to think of something to say to Sakura, but nothing came to mind.  _"I hate this. Is she ever going to be comfortable around me again?"_  He sighed heavily, took his last bite of rice and left the group.

Naruto was about to grab seconds when he saw his brother walking off into the woods.  _I wonder what's up?_  he thought. He turned to Hinata, who he'd been sitting next to. "I'll be right back," he said, blushing as he gave her a kiss on the top of her head. He ignored Sakura's impish smile and headed in Sasuke's general direction.

 

* * *

"He's on his way to Ganshou city. There are four others with him, including Kakashi...and Sasuke..."

Orochimaru snorted. "I have no more interest in that brat as a vessel. Naruto is my only concern now." He picked up a glass of water and took a sip. "Did your mission go well?" he asked Kabuto as a bead of sweat on the glass rolled downward and fell onto the table.

"Hai, Orochimaru-sama. He has agreed to retrieve Naruto for us. However, he also told me that he will only do it if we stay out of Atkatsuki business," Kabuto replied.

Orochimaru cocked an eyebrow in curiosity. "Oh really?" He put his glass back on the table. "Well I supposed we can comply...for a short period of time," he said with a contemptuous smile.

"Hm," Kabuto remarked with a smirk as he pushed his glasses higher on his nose "I'll inform him of your decision," he said with a half bow.

Orochimaru nodded. "Go," he commanded.

"Hai," Kabuto said just before walking away.

Orochimaru rose from his chair and left the room as well. He walked down the hall a bit and opened a heavy steel door. He went inside and smiled cruelly at the six summon creatures who lay still as death in their respective sealed cages. "Everything is finally falling into place."

 

* * *

"Orochimaru-sama has agreed to your terms," Kabuto said with a tiny, barely respectful bow.

"Then I will leave in the morning. That is all," replied the man who stood in the shadows.

Kabuto gritted his teeth a bit at the man's insolence but bowed again anyway. "Hai, Itachi-san."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love cliff hangers. *Runs*


	22. Shinigami

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone for your reviews. You have no idea how happy reviews make me. :)
> 
> Wakizashi- Japanese short sword

 

 

The air around the team had begun to get warmer. So much so that Naruto and Hinata now had their jackets tied around their waists.

"Why the hell is it so hot?" Naruto complained.

Kakashi, who had just finished putting his jounin vest in his backpack, turned toward his subordinate. "You kids are about to find out why this is called the Fire country," he answered with a knowing smirk.

Just when Naruto was at the point of wanting to remove his shirt they came around a corner and his mouth simply fell open.

The road they had been walking was now elevated above the ground by at least four hundred feet and underneath this bridge of rock was a field of fire. There were thin ribbons of magma visible segmenting the ground like organic veins. In between these veins were large vents which expelled hot steam; some of which nearly reaching half the height of the bridge. This vision of hell stretched on for a half mile or so. From the team's right, a lone geyser shot its contents into the air making the teens take an instinctive step backward.

Sakura's eyes bugged out as she stared at the scene before her. "Th th th that's an active volcano!" she yelled with an incredulous expression as she jabbed a finger in the direction of the lava.

"Yup," Kakashi answered nonchalantly. "Let's go," he said and began walking. When he noticed his team was not following him he turned around. "Aren't you coming?"

"That's an active volcano!" Sakura yelled again as though Kakashi didn't have that knowledge.

Kakashi cocked an eyebrow. "And?"

"And you're insane!" Naruto replied, pointing at the jounin.

"This volcano hasn't erupted in over three hundred years. There's no danger," Kakashi answered plainly. The group looked at each other with uncertainty. "I'm telling you it's perfectly safe," he said with impatience.

Sasuke took a calming breath and took a few steps forward, the others followed suit. Before long they were all walking along the bridge. However, they were very tense the entire way across. Kakashi saw their trepidation and decided to distract them with a little history.

"When the first people to settle this land were looking for a place to build their home they crossed this bridge on the way. They named it the Fire country and then named the capital city to match the theme." He sighed wistfully. "I haven't been to Ganshou in ten years. You kids will love it."

Thoughts of the city, for the moment at least, pushed away their fears as they neared the end of the bridge. Kakashi pointed ahead to where the land became level again. "There's the exit," he barely got out before four teenage blurs shot past him. He blinked and chuckled to himself. "Well, at least they made up for lost time."

 

* * *

Sakura could not have more resembled a deer caught in someone's headlights if she tried. She stared, bug-eyed and guppy-mouthed, at the city that had just become visible as they cleared the crest of the hill they had been climbing for the past half hour. The rest of the teens had similar, yet far less extreme expressions of amazement on their faces.

Kakashi noted his team's collective reaction and his eyes crinkled into a smile. "Well, now. I do believe I promised you a break once we got to the top?"

Sakura looked at her sensei as if he'd grown a second head. "Are you crazy?! Now that we're so close?"

Kakashi looked at the others. "Anyone else suddenly have energy again?"

Naruto and Hinata sagged their shoulders and gave Kakashi a look that clearly said 'Please, no more'. Sasuke just shrugged as though he didn't care either way.

"Alright then, we'll take a fifteen-minute break," Kakashi announced.

Sakura instantly looked absolutely crestfallen. She shuffled over to where her teammates were now sitting and plopped down heavily on the nearest large rock.

Naruto reached into his backpack and pulled out a small package. He tapped Hinata on the shoulder. "Neh, Hinata-chan? Want one?" he offered, holding out a chocolate covered butter cookie.

Hinata smiled warmly. "Arigato, Naruto-kun," she said as she took the cookie from his hand.

Naruto grabbed a cookie for himself and scooted over so he could lean against his girlfriend a bit as he ate. Hinata blushed heavily but didn't feel the urge to pass out. She had begun to get used to Naruto's affections and was loving every single second of it.  _How did this happen?_  she asked herself in her mind.  _How did my dream come true?_  She glanced sideways at Naruto.  _Will I someday be able to tell him I love him?_

Sasuke looked over at Sakura. She was staring at the city with a longing expression, checking her watch every minute or so. "Sakura," he called.

Sakura tensed a little at her friend's voice but forced herself to look his way. "Y...yes?"

_Dammit! She's still scared of me, Sasuke thought in frustration._

Naruto looked at his brother and frowned. He knew why Sasuke was upset. He remembered his conversation with him in the woods a few days earlier...

_(("Sasuke?" Naruto called out just before seeing his target sitting in front of a small pond._

_Sasuke sighed at not being left alone. "Hey," he said without looking up._

_Naruto sat down next to Sasuke. "What's up?"_

_Sasuke sighed and threw a pebble into the pond. "Nothing."_

_Naruto frowned. "Is it Sakura-chan?"_

_After a short pause, Sasuke gave in. "Yeah," he said as he picked up another pebble. "I don't have a lot of people I care about, Naruto. You, Sakura and Kakashi are just about it. I just can't stand the fact that one of the few people I fully trust no longer trusts me," he finished as the last of the ripples from his pebble dissipated._

_Naruto sighed in thought. "Just give her time, nii-san. She'll come around," he said with a small smile._

_For some reason, hearing Naruto use 'brother' in place of his name relaxed him a bit. "Thanks," Sasuke said._

" _No problem," Naruto replied.))_

_I hope I'm right, Sasuke, Naruto thought._

"Sakura...are you ever going to stop jumping whenever I talk?" Sasuke asked sadly.

Sakura winced a bit. "I...I hope so. I just want you to know though, that I don't hate you. I just need a little more time to deal with everything."

This perked up the raven-haired Uchiha a bit. "It's a start at least...Thank you."

After a moment of thought, Sakura moved just a little closer to the boy her heart had grown to fear...and felt a little of that fear melt away.

 

* * *

The streets were made up of cobblestones, there were lights and advertisements everywhere and police roamed around instead of jounin. The buildings looked like the ones in their hometown, only much bigger—some of them topping out at eighteen stories. Naruto and the other teens simply stared at the scene before them. "A...amazing," Naruto commented in awe.

Kakashi smiled. "Now, before we find a place to stay we need to speak with the Mayor," he said as he unfolded a map.

Naruto looked at Kakashi. "What's a Mayor?"

"Similar to a Hokage, although they usually aren't ninjas and they don't have absolute power," Kakashi answered as he traced a street on the map with his index finger. He looked up at the street signs. "This way," he announced and began walking.

"How can a leader not have absolute power?" Sakura asked, her curiosity piqued.

"They run under a system where the leader shares his power with a group of advisors. If a majority of the advisors don't agree on an issue they rule against it. If they do agree then it is passed along to the Mayor and he has the final say over whether or not the decision of the advisors will go into effect," Kakashi said as he walked, occasional pulling Sakura away from store windows.

After Sakura had resumed walking she frowned. "It sounds inefficient."

"To a degree, but it gives the citizens a voice," Kakashi said as he looked up at the number of the building they had just come to. "Ah. Here we are. We need to go to the tenth floor," he said as he walked toward the front entrance.

Naruto and the others looked at each other. "Wouldn't it be faster if we jumped up?" Hinata asked.

Kakashi shook his head. "We have to keep a low profile for now," he said, opening the front doors.

Naruto stared at the panel of buttons that contained the one Kakashi had just pushed. "What's this?" he asked, gesturing at the handle-less doors in front of them.

"An elevator."

"Elevator?" Sasuke repeated.

"Yes," Kakashi answered, sighing at their technological ignorance just as the doors opened by themselves. "Get in," he instructed.

The teens looked unsure but obeyed. The doors hissed shut and Kakashi pushed the button for the tenth floor. Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and Hinata were a little startled when the elevator began to move.

"It's basically a steel box raised up by heavy cables. Don't worry. It's perfectly safe," Kakashi assured them.

The doors opened onto a floor with a lush, red runner carpet and doors peppering the long hallway. "It's at the end of the hall," Kakashi informed.

 

* * *

The Mayor looked up when his secretary walked in. "Yes, Rei?"

"A Mister Hatake Kakashi is here to see you, sir," the woman replied.

The Mayor smiled. "Ah, very good. Show them in, Rei."

The woman nodded with a smile. "Yes, Sir." She disappeared and came back a moment later with Kakashi and his team in tow.

The Mayor's face lit up. "Ahhh, Kakashi," he said with an enigmatic grin. "How long has it been?" he asked as the men gave each other a polite bow.

Kakashi smiled. "Ten years, sir."

The Mayor moved back to his desk. "Much too long." He pushed a button on his desk.

"Yes?" came his secretary's voice over a small speaker.

"Please bring in two extra chairs."

"Right away, Sir."

Just a moment later the secretary entered the room, dragging two cushy looking office chairs behind her. She pushed them into place, gave the Mayor's company a polite bow and left.

"She's wonderful. I don't know how I'd manage around here without her." He noticed his company was not sitting. "Sit, please," he said with a smile.

"So what's the situation?" Naruto asked with a firm expression as he sat down.

The Mayor cocked an eyebrow. "Impatient, isn't he?" he directed at Kakashi.

"The curse of youth," Kakashi said with an amused smile.

The Mayor chuckled warmly. "I see you still have issues with your looks," he said, indicating the mask on Kakashi's face.

Kakashi flinched as his team stared at him. "There's a reason for this mask," he retorted.

The Mayor rolled his eyes and smiled. "Yes yes, I remember," he said with a few dismissive waves of his hand. "It doesn't make that reason any less ridiculous though."

Kakashi, suddenly sensing his student's eyes boring into his body, decided to do away with any more potentially reputation-damaging small talk. "Mayor Kurata, we really should get started," he said tersely.

"Alright then," Kurata answered with mild disappointment. "A few weeks ago some people who know a few jutsus moved into the city and took over one of the larger gangs. Unfortunately, my regular police forces have proven less than adequate. You will be heading to the north side of the city. The gang calls themselves the Youkai. We have very little information about them except that they are headed by a woman named Minako. Hopefully, you will be able to find them before things escalate further."

Kakashi nodded. "Understood. We will do our best," he stood and bowed to Kurata.

Kurata stood also. "I have rooms for you at the hotel across the road. Please make sure they know you are my guests,' he said as he bowed to the group.

"Hai. Thank you, Sir," Kakashi said.

The team stood and left the office. Naruto jogged a bit and got in step with Kakashi. "So why do you wear the mask anyway?"

Kakashi twitched. "Never you mind."

* * *

The sliding shoji paper wall moved to the right and Sakura and Hinata stepped in. "It's a nice room," Sakura commented with a smile.

Hinata nodded in agreement, but glanced at the wall separating their room from the boys'.  _I'm separated from Naruto-kun,_  she thought in disappointment.

* * *

"Are you sure?" said a male voice.

"Hai, Takeshi-san. They are definitely ninja," said a girl in a maid's outfit who was bowed in front of the man who'd spoken.

The black-haired man curled his thumb and index finger around his chin in thought. "Alright then. Keep an eye on them. I will inform Akuiko-sama."

"Hai, Takeshi-san," the girl said before getting up and leaving the room.

 

* * *

Naruto laid down on his sleeping mat and stared at the soft glow of a lantern that outlined Hinata's form in the next room. From what he could tell, she was reading. "Hm?" he said as Hinata stood up and removed her jacket. His eyes widened to their ultimate capacity when he saw her also remove her shirt. He tried desperately to turn his eyes away.  _I'm not a pervert. I'm not a pervert,_  he chanted in his mind. He swallowed hard as she completed undressing and was slightly relieved when she slid on some pajamas.  _If she ever finds out I saw her naked shadow she'll kill me,_  he thought nervously as he wiped away the small trickle of blood that had escaped his nose.

Naruto rolled over onto his other side, trying as hard as he could to shut out the image of her body.  _Damn, I hate growing up._

 

* * *

Hinata walked out of the door to her room and saw Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi already waiting. "Good morning, everyone," she greeted as Naruto was busy stretching his arms over his head and yawning.

Naruto jumped a bit at Hinata's voice and blushed furiously.

"Naruto-kun, are you alright?" Hinata asked as she walked over and put a hand on the boy's forehead to check his temperature.

Naruto suddenly felt a new warmth moving its way down the inside of his nose.  _"Oh please, not again,"_  he mentally begged.

Kakashi cocked an eyebrow at seeing a small line of red come out of Naruto's nose just before the boy hurriedly wiped it away. He chuckled.  _Maybe I should loan him my book._ He shook his head to rid himself of the idea.  _Nah. Tsunade-sama would rip me in half._

He decided he'd better diffuse the situation. He walked in between the two and spoke loudly. "Eh hem. We should get something to eat. We have a long day ahead of us."

The team nodded and followed their sensei to the hotel exit.

 

* * *

Sakura drummed her fingers on the tabletop as she watched her blonde-haired friend polish off his fourth bowl of ramen and order another. "Naruto...we'd like to start the mission soon," she said with an irritated expression.

The waitress set Naruto's order down in front of him. "Sakura, this is the best ramen I've ever tasted! How can I leave before I'm stuffed solid?" he answered, happily patting his stomach.

Kakashi leaned over to Naruto. "Make that your last bowl or I tell Hinata about that nosebleed earlier," he whispered in the boy's ear.

Hinata wondered what Kakashi was telling Naruto. Her curiosity became even stronger when she saw her boyfriend turn a rather bright shade of scarlet.  _"Naruto-kun?"_

Naruto hurriedly finished his ramen and paid for the meal. "Ready!" he announced with a sheepish grin.

As the team left the restaurant and headed toward the north side of town they didn't notice the girl on the rooftops that followed their every move.

 

* * *

Itachi stood on a radio tower on the outskirts of Ganshou city. As the wind rustled his ebony black hair he wished he had Kisame with him. It would've made the search go much quicker.

He scanned the streets closest to his perch; seeing no one resembling his quarry he shot off over the rooftops.  _Where are you?_

 

* * *

Kakashi stopped walking for a moment, looked around a bit and nodded. "Okay. This looks like a good spot to start our search. "Sakura and Sasuke, you two will question the locals. Get as much information as you can." He noticed a tentative look on Sakura's face. "Problem, Sakura?"

"Ummm," Sakura replied, biting her lower lip. Finally, she sighed. "No, Sensei."

Kakashi nodded in approval. "Good. Naruto, Hinata. You two will look for any buildings that the Youkai might consider using as a base of operations."

Naruto and Hinata gave a sharp nod of obedience.

"I'll search on my own. We'll meet back here in one hour. If you find anything, don't engage the enemy. Tsunade-sama's assignment letter said that the gang has nearly seventy members so we will be attacking as a group. Got it?" His team nodded in understanding. "Alright then—Dismissed!"

The two teams shot off in different directions. Kakashi sighed heavily in thought.  _"I hope this mission doesn't turn out to be more than we're being paid for..."_

 

* * *

It was difficult for Sakura to put aside the unease that working with Sasuke was giving her, but since she had no choice she ignored her churning stomach as best she could. "Let's start here," she said, pointing at a small convenience store.

Relieved that Sakura didn't require any prodding to get her to work with him Sasuke answered her. "Okay."

Sakura and Sasuke walked up to the counter. "Excuse me?"

"Yes?" replied the male store clerk with a smile.

"Do you know anything about the Youkai gang?" Sakura asked quietly.

Instantly the clerk's expression darkened. "No...I don't. And if you know what's good for you, you won't ask about them again. Now, please leave before you get me in trouble," he said firmly.

"I hope everyone's not like that," Sakura said as they left the store.

Sasuke sighed. "All we can do is keep trying. Let's go."

Sakura managed a small smile. "Hai."

"How bout that store?" Sasuke offered, pointing at a ramen shop.

"Okay," Sakura agreed. "Thank God Naruto's not with us. We'd never get out of there," she thought with a grimace.

 

* * *

Naruto landed neatly on a fire escape and Hinata jumped up behind him. He scanned the alley below and, not finding anything, leaped to the roof across the way.

As Hinata followed Naruto she got the distinct feeling someone was watching them. She shot ahead so that she was jumping in synch with him. "Naruto-kun, there's someone behind us."

"Are you sure?" Naruto asked as his feet landed on a roof access housing just before his next jump.

"Byakugan," Hinata whispered. Using her now nearly three hundred sixty degree vision she looked behind them. "Hai, one girl. I think she's been there for a while now."

The girl behind the two Konoha ninjas frowned when she saw the short-haired girl move into synch with her partner.  _"Have I been spotted?"_  she wondered.

The girl saw the pair drop out of site into an alley for a moment then come right back out again and continue along the roofs.  _"What the hell?"_  she thought in confusion. She landed on the edge of the building and was about to follow her targets onto the next one when the boy came flying at her from below and delivered a kick to her midriff. "OOF!"

Naruto jumped after the girl when she flew backward onto the roof from the force of his kick. The kage bunshin that had been running with Hinata poofed out of existence and she quickly doubled back.

The girl stood up, breathing heavily and ran at Naruto and Hinata, pulling out a wakizashi as she did so.

Naruto put his hands together in his favorite seal. "KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" Instantly, five more Narutos appeared around the girl in a circle.

The girl's eyes went wide when her number of enemies suddenly tripled.  _"What the hell jutsu is that?!"_  she thought as the copies of the boy rushed her. She held her sword above her head and put her left hand and forearm in a taijutsu pose. "Danshingu kaze no jutsu!" she called out. A swirl of chakra embedded wind pushed her about two feet into the air. Her feet pointed and the chakra began to spin her at a dizzying rate. With the grace of figure skater, she neatly sliced through all the bunshins in the span of a second.

Unfortunately for her, as she was spinning she failed to notice the real Naruto above her. He dropped out of the sky and executed a half roundhouse kick, connecting his foot with her face. She went flying backward and then skidded along the ground for a good eight feet before stopping.

Naruto landed as Hinata ran towards the girl, meaning to attack when she saw something that made her stomach turn to cement.

Naruto ran to where his opponent lay. "Hinata-chan, why'd you stop?"

Biting her lower lip, Hinata simply pointed at her reason.

Naruto swallowed hard at the sight that met his eyes. The girl's mouth was oozing blood, her arm was bent in a very unnatural way and sticking out of her ribcage was what appeared to be a long metal pole; probably leftover from an old roof sign. Blood coated the entire length of it and even more of the red liquid came from the hole in her chest. He sat down hard on the rooftop, nearly losing his balance as he did so. "Can you...do anything for her?" he asked in a hollow voice.

Squeezing her eyes shut in regret Hinata shook her head.

Suddenly the girl coughed loudly, choking up blood. She opened her eyes and looked over at the boy who was staring at her dying body in disbelief. "How...did...you...?" she asked dumbly before closing her eyes again for the last time.

Hinata looked over at Naruto. He was pale and his mouth formed an 'o' of shock. "Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked in concern.

After a moment of silence, Naruto spoke. "I...I didn't mean to...I just...wanted her down...so we could question her."

Hinata, not knowing what to say simply curled her fingers around Naruto's hand.

"I...I've never...killed anyone...before," Naruto said as tears filled his eyes.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata said as her own eyes misted over. She pulled the stunned boy into a comforting hug.

A few tears fell down his face as Naruto sank into Hinata's arms. He opened his eyes and stared at the face of the girl he had killed. She couldn't have been more than twelve years old.  _"I'm sorry,"_  he thought.

Hinata took a moment to glance at her watch. "Um...we're late...We should go," she said gently.

Naruto sighed and reluctantly pulled away from the sanctuary that was his girlfriend's embrace. He nodded and wiped his eyes. Hinata stood and Naruto picked up the girl's broken body. The friction of the pole against her insides made a sickening sound as he pulled her off of it. "We'll take her to the police station first."

Hinata nodded. "Okay." They took a few steps. "Naruto-kun? Maybe I should take her?" she offered.

Naruto shook his head. "No...I'll do it," he replied quietly.

As Naruto walked past Hinata she could have sworn he looked older...tired. She sighed and followed him as he headed toward the police station.


	23. Innocence Lost

 

 

Kakashi, Sasuke, and Sakura watched the sinking sun with a mixture of irritation and worry.  _"Where the hell are they?"_  Sasuke asked in his mind as a strong wind kicked up a few papers scattered along the street.

Sakura turned her head to her sensei. "Should we go look for them?" she asked, biting her lower lip.

Kakashi sighed. "We'll give them another fifteen minutes. If they're not back by that time, I'll go," he replied calmly as he turned another page in his book.

Sakura nodded, but somehow she felt that it would not be so simple.

* * *

"Pleeeeeease, Tsunade-sama?" TenTen begged.

"As I told you at Naruto's party, I simply don't have the time to take on another student," Tsunade answered with a sigh.

"Just while they're gone then?"

"That's not enough time to teach you much of anything," Tsunade said with a frown.

"I'm already an expert in twenty-seven weapons. A katana shouldn't be that difficult," TenTen rebutted in a last ditch effort to get the Fifth to agree.

Tsunade sighed in defeat. "Alright." Ignoring the utterly gleeful expression in TenTen's eyes, she added, "But you still won't learn much from me. I didn't get very far in my katana training."

"Why?"

Tsunade smirked. "I never did have much use for any weapon besides my fists."

* * *

The brunette-haired chief of police looked up from instructing the rookie in front of her when she heard the front doors open. Two teenagers entered the building; well, two teenagers and a corpse. She ran to the strange group at once. "What happened?" she asked, looking at the girl in alarm.

Naruto looked down and stayed silent.

"We're n...injas from Konoha," Hinata spoke up. "Can...can someone take her from him?" she said with a nod in Naruto's direction.

The chief frowned in thought, not sure if she could trust them. Finally, she nodded in agreement. "Alright." She turned her head to the rookie she had been instructing a moment ago. "Higurashi, take this poor kid to the morgue," she commanded grimly.

The blonde rookie cringed. "H...hai, Emiko-san." He got up from his desk and gingerly took the girl from Naruto's arms.

"Alright. You two, follow me," Emiko instructed as Higurashi carried the girl away.

Hinata nodded and, putting her hand in Naruto's, followed Emiko into her office.

Emiko closed the door behind them and sat down heavily into her chair. "Now, what happened?" she asked sternly as she waved a hand at the chairs in front of her desk.

Hinata and Naruto took the cue and sat down. Seeing her boyfriend wasn't in the mood for talking, Hinata took the initiative. "We were hired by Mayor Kurata to eliminate the Youkai gang."

"Hm. I remember Tate saying something about that. Please continue."

"We were conducting a s...search of the area they were suspected to be in when...I noticed we were being followed..." she said with a quick glance at Naruto. "Naruto-kun a...ambushed her and she fought back. He kicked her and when she landed she...fell on a metal s...sign pole," she finished with a grimace and a swallow as she noticed Naruto grit his teeth.

Emiko blew out a long puff of air. "I see."

"Naruto-kun didn't mean to k...kill her. It was an accident. He d...didn't know the pole was there," Hinata added, becoming louder and a little squeaky near the end of her sentence, her eyes begging Emiko to believe her.

Suddenly, Naruto's fist slammed down on the desk, making both girls jump. He hung his head so that his hair covered his eyes. "I...I'm sorry. She...she wasn't even..." he said as two fresh tears moistened his cheeks.

Hinata frowned sadly. "Naruto-kun..."

"She wasn't even our age. We...we don't even know if she was really an enemy," Naruto continued, wiping the wetness from his face.

"I...it was an accident, Naruto-kun," Hinata said, offering the only comfort she could think of at the moment.

Naruto frowned. "Her family won't care about that," he said sadly.

Hinata, not knowing what else to say, put her arms around the boy she loved.

A knock sounded on the door. "Yes?" Emiko asked.

The door opened and Higurashi poked his head in. "We have a positive I.D on that girl."

"Alright." Emiko stood and looked at Naruto and Hinata. "I'll be back in a moment," she said as she placed a comforting hand on Hinata's shoulder.

Emiko walked outside the office, closing the door behind her. Hinata relaxed a bit, realizing that Emiko's actions indicated that she believed them. She watched the two shadows in the frosted glass window of the door with a nervous tension that threatened to make her sick to her stomach.

Emiko came back after roughly two minutes and re-took her seat. She had a short stack of papers in her hands. "Her name was Katsura. And you can relax, Naruto. She had been arrested several times for crimes relating to the Youkai gang."

Naruto sighed with partial relief. "Thank you," he said, brightening a bit. It was obvious, however, that he still hadn't completely recovered from the whole experience.

Hinata gripped Naruto's hand. "A...ano, our s...sensei is expecting us. May we go now?" she asked.

Emiko put a curled, thoughtful index finger to her chin. "Hmm. I suppose I've gotten all I need from you. Go ahead," she said in a serious tone of voice.

"Thank you," Hinata said with a polite bow. She turned to Naruto. "C...c'mon," she said with a warm smile.

Naruto nodded and rose from his seat. "Yeah."

Naruto and Hinata left the police station in silence. As they leapt up to the rooftops, Hinata prayed that Naruto was truly as stable as he seemed.

 

* * *

Kakashi landed on the platform encircling the water tower in front of him. As he peered out over the streets he saw two dots out of the corner of his eye, moving fast. Turning his head so he could see the dots more clearly he realized it was Naruto and Hinata racing along the tops of the buildings. He jumped off in their direction. "Where have you two been?" he said with concern once he reached their position.

Hinata and Naruto stopped moving. After a moment of catching their breath, Naruto spoke up. "I'm...sorry. We ran into an enemy," he explained.

Kakashi frowned when Naruto didn't continue. "And?"

Realizing he wasn't going to get out of a full explanation, Naruto sighed. "We were being followed by a girl. I tried to catch her for information, but I screwed up. She fell on a sign pole...and died... We...just got back from giving the body to the police station," he finished quietly.

Kakashi looked like he understood more than he should have. "She was your first kill, wasn't she?"

Naruto's face snapped upwards, his expression showing his shock. "How did you know?"

"Hm. Just the way you said it," Kakashi answered as he clapped a hand on the boy's shoulder. "It shakes everyone up a little the first time, even if they don't show it. Unfortunately, death is a fact of life in our line of work."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, but I didn't know she was an enemy till about ten minutes ago. For all I knew, she was just curious and defended herself when I attacked," he said solemnly.

Kakashi sighed. "That is an even more unfortunate result of being a ninja. We aren't infallible. We do make mistakes, and sometimes an innocent dies from those mistakes," Kakashi said, closing his eyes and thinking of Obito as he finished.

Naruto felt a small amount of sadness when he realized his sensei was speaking from experience. "Are we...gonna look around some more?" he asked, hoping to change the subject.

Kakashi shook his head. "Not right now. We could all use something in our stomachs. And I suspect you need some time to adjust to what happened."

Naruto nodded, grateful that Kakashi was so perceptive. "Did Sasuke and Sakura-chan find out anything?" he asked as they began to head back to the hotel.

Kakashi's eye crinkled into a frown. "No. It seems the residents are too afraid to talk. We'll just have to find the gang on our own."

 

* * *

"Be gentle with it. It's older than me," Tsunade warned as she handed TenTen a rather worn looking shinnai.

TenTen frowned. "I have to practice with a pinchy stick? Why?" she asked, sounding insulted.

Tsunade laughed a bit at the girl's arrogance as it reminded her so much of her own at that age. "Because it saves me from having to waste chakra healing you."

TenTen was about to make a retort when Jiraiya burst into the room.

Tsunade's eyes widened. "Jiraiya?" She noticed the panicked look on his face. "What's wrong!" she demanded, knowing Jiraiya didn't show panic very often.

"I just got word from my network," the aging sannin said in between gasps for air. "Orochimaru has sent Itachi to capture Naruto!"

"WHAT!" Tsunade screeched, grabbing Jiraiya's shoulders hard enough to make him wince.

"You have to send an anbu squad immediately!"

Now Tsunade was beginning to panic. "I...I can't! They're all away on missions! The jounins too!" She suddenly looked like she had an idea. "You! You have to go!" she said loudly.

"I don't have a team!" Jiraiya replied just as loudly.

Tsunade's gaze immediately turned to TenTen. "TenTen, go get Lee and Neji! I want you all back here yesterday!"

The young weapons expert looked startled for less than a second. "Hai!" she confirmed just before she disappeared from sight.

Tsunade's stomach tied itself into an unheard of number of knots as she waited for TenTen to return.

 

* * *

Naruto made sure to keep himself turned the opposite direction from Hinata and Sakura's room as he lay in his bed. Even though his conscience was managing to win, his hormones were screaming at him to peep. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He stood from his bed and marched himself to the bathroom, which had a full length mirror on the inside of the door.  _"I'm gonna get this outta my system if I have to die of blood loss to do it!"_  he thought with determination.

Naruto closed the door and stood in front of the mirror. He let out a calming breath and put his hands into the seal for henge. "Henge!" he said just before turning into the buxom blonde that was the trademark of his Sexy No Jutsu. In less than two seconds he had a nosebleed that knocked him over onto the edge of the tub.  _"Dammit!"_  He got back up and wiped his nose. "Henge!" he yelled again, gaining him the same blood bitchslap. He gritted his teeth.  _"I **will** beat this!"_ He put his hands into the seal again. "Henge!"

 

* * *

Kakashi knocked on the bathroom door for the second time. "Naruto, other people need to use the bathroom," he said flatly.

Naruto barely heard the voice that was calling out to him through the haze in his mind.  _"I musta dozed off."_  He lifted his head up from the floor which turned out to be a bad idea as a crushing headache came over him. After closing his eyes for a moment he suddenly remembered what he'd been doing and that there was a good amount of blood all over the front of his nightshirt. "Shit!" he cursed under his breath. "If Kakashi-sensei sees this I'll have to explain everything!" he hissed as he forced himself to deal with the headache and shakily got to his feet. The instant he was standing straight up a wave of dizziness swept over him and he fell to the floor, unconscious.

Hearing a loud crash, both Kakashi and Sasuke became worried. "Naruto?" No answer. "Naruto!" Sasuke yelled. He took out a kunai, jammed it into the crack between the frame and the door and snapped it sideways. The wood around the bolt shattered as Hinata and Sakura came running into the room, obviously wondering what was wrong.

"Sasuke-kun, what...?" Sakura questioned as Sasuke swung the bathroom door open.

When Hinata saw Naruto lying on the floor with blood all over him, not to mention a small amount on the floor and walls, her eyes filled with tears. "Naruto-kun!" she yelled as she shoved her way past a stunned Kakashi. She fell down next to Naruto and activated her Byakugan. After a moment she let her eyes return to normal and looked up at the others with confusion. "I...I don't understand. All he has is a bump on the head. There's no wounds and no internal bleeding," she reported.

"Hmm," Kakashi mused in concern. "Will he be alright?"

"I...think so," Hinata replied with uncertainty.

"Alright then. Sasuke, you bring Naruto to his bed," as an afterthought he added, "And put a clean shirt on him." He turned to Sakura. "Can you handle cleaning the mess in here?" he asked, pointing to the bathroom.

Sakura grimaced, but agreed. "Hai, Kakashi-sensei."

"Hinata, you help Sasuke. I'll go explain all the noise to the front desk," Kakashi informed the shy girl.

As Kakashi walked off Hinata looked in Naruto's bag for a new shirt.  _"What could've happened?"_  she wondered in her mind.

 

* * *

Hinata and Kakashi sat near Naruto as he slept, each reading their respective books (Although Hinata's was much less racy). She glanced over at the boy for what felt like the hundredth time. "Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi looked up from his book. "Yes?"

"Why hasn't he woken up yet? Shouldn't the red chakra have healed him by now?" Hinata asked with worry.

Kakashi frowned in thought. "Yes, it should have. I don't understand it either."

Hinata bit her lower lip. "Should we take him to the hospital after all?"

Kakashi shook his head. "No. His color has gotten much better. I think he'll be fine. Although I have to say that I'm very curious as to how he lost enough blood to make him pass out with no obvious injuries."

"Nhm," Hinata replied softly. She heard a soft groan to her left. "Naruto-kun?" she exclaimed as she rushed to her boyfriend's side. His head turned slightly in her direction and his eyes slowly opened.

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto said weakly. He put his hand to his head. "I feel like I got stepped on by Gama Bunta." Suddenly his eyes snapped wide. "I...I can explain!" he said franticly.

Kakashi cocked an eyebrow. "Please do," he answered calmly.

"I...ummm...I..." He stammered, looking back and forth between Hinata and Kakashi. "Hinata-chan...I'm sorry, but can you leave the room for a minute? It's...kind of embarrassing," he said with a small grimace.

Hinata cocked her head to the side in confusion, but nodded. "Okay. I'll be right outside if you need me," she said as she gave him a chaste kiss on his forehead.

After Hinata closed the door Kakashi turned to his student and gave him an expectant look. "I'm waiting."

Naruto cleared his throat. "It's...it's kinda about that nosebleed you saw..." his said with a slight redness to his cheeks.

Kakashi's eyebrows raised. "You don't mean to tell me that all  _that_  blood was from..." he said with his mouth a gape.

Naruto gulped. "Yeah..."

Kakashi's face was incredulous. "How the hell...?"

"I though maybe if I saw a naked woman enough then...I wouldn't get them anymore," Naruto answered while staring at the floor.

Kakashi pointed at Naruto. "Y...you had a naked woman in here!" he said with loudly whispered shock.

"No!" Naruto answered. At seeing the uncertainty on Kakashi's face he stood up, took a deep breath and put his hands into the familiar seal. "Henge!"

Kakashi's mouth dropped open at the model worthy naked woman who now stood before him. After a moment he regained his senses. "Naruto, please, drop that henge," he said as he covered his eyes.

"What's the matter?" Female Naruto asked, confused at her sensei's reaction.

"Just do it!" Kakashi commanded.

Naruto frowned and released the jutsu. "Okay...clear."

Kakashi sighed and put his hand down. "Naruto, you shouldn't do that henge."

"Why?" Naruto asked in confusion. He had been expecting the same reaction he had gotten from other adult males in the past. Especially since he knew Kakashi was a closet pervert.

"Because you're only fourteen, that's why. You may not really be female and you may not actually be naked, but it still invokes lust in adult men and that is wrong," Kakashi said seriously.

Naruto frowned. He'd never thought of it that way.

"Naruto...tell me you haven't done that in front of Jiraiya-sama," Kakashi asked with a sick feeling in his stomach.

Naruto winced in response. "Yeah. I had to show him to get him to train me."

Kakashi sighed as he slouched and put his head in his hands. "Promise me you won't show that jutsu to any more adults."

Naruto frowned. "What about when I turn sixteen?"

Kakashi grinned. "Then you can make as many nosebleeds as you want," he said with a chuckle.

Naruto grinned.

"I don't understand how you made your own nose bleed though."

"The mirror," Naruto answered quietly.

A look of understanding came over Kakashi's face. "Oh..." After a moment he burst out laughing.

Naruto gritted his teeth. "It's not funny."

Kakashi only laughed harder. After he managed to stop, his face once again became calm. "Naruto, you do realize the whole nosebleed thing is normal, right?"

"Yeah," Naruto answered reluctantly.

"Well, you can't just desensitize yourself to the female figure." At seeing Naruto's crestfallen expression he added, "It does happen less as you get older though," Kakashi said with a reassuring smile.

"Really?"

Kakashi cocked an eyebrow and held up his beloved book. "Hey, if I was lying, do you honestly think I could read this in public?"

Naruto laughed. "Where's Sasuke and Sakura-chan?"

"They're out patrolling," Kakashi replied as he worked some of the kinks out of his neck.

Naruto opened the door. "Hinata-chan, you can come in now."

Hinata looked at Naruto and smiled. "Okay."

As the two walked back into the room Kakashi stood up. "Well then, why don't we do some searching of our own?"

Naruto nodded. "Nm."

 

* * *

The cool morning air made Naruto feel a little better.  _I hope we find something soon. I'm getting hungry._

Kakashi smiled at the way Naruto and Hinata jumped in unison. It reminded him of the way he and Rin had...no...that was an old dream, now long gone. He sighed sadly and pushed on forward. He suddenly noticed two figures bounding over the roof tops a few hundred yards in front of them. "Ah, there they are," he informed his current company.

Naruto squinted against the bright ten am sunshine to see what his sensei was talking about. At realizing the two dots were Sakura and Sasuke he smiled. When they were within earshot Naruto called out to them. "Sasuke! Sakura-chan!"

Sakura turned her head to look behind her when she heard the voice that had yelled her name. "Sasuke-kun, it's Naruto," she informed him, stopping on the next roof.

Sasuke stopped a few feet after Sakura and the two headed back to the rest of their team. "Naruto, you okay?" Sasuke asked. "What happened to him?" he asked Kakashi.

Naruto grimaced and looked pleadingly at the jounin.

Kakashi waved his hand in a reassuring manner. "Naruto already made his report to me on this. And since it's a private matter, I'll let him decide whether or not to tell you."

Naruto sighed in relief, although it was short lived as his brother immediately turned to him.

"Well?" Sasuke said expectantly with a scowl on his face.

"C'mon , Sasuke...it's private," Naruto replied.

Sasuke's scowl deepened and he sighed heavily. "Are you in danger?" Naruto shook his head. "Is there a chance of it happening again?" Naruto gave the same answer as before. "Alright then. Let's get back to the mission."

Naruto dropped his head in relief.  _Thank God. If I had to explain that to him he'd blackmail me with it for life._

 

* * *

The clock on the building they had just passed struck eleven and Naruto yawned. "Neh, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata turned her head to look at him. "Hmm?"

"What time were we supposed to meet up with the others again?" Naruto asked, stifling another yawn.

"Eleven thirty. We'd b...better head back," Hinata answered.

Naruto nodded gratefully. They really hadn't rested since they started their search.

Not far from their rendezvous point Naruto noticed a small group of figures entering a boarded up apartment building. "Hinata-chan, look," he said as he stopped on a roof and pointed downward.

Hinata looked at the building just in time to see the last of the group Naruto had spotted climb through a wide gap in the boards. "Byakugan!" Her now enhanced vision let her know that the pair had found what they were looking for. "There's at least th...thirty people inside. I think we've found them," she said with a satisfied smile.

Naruto nodded. "We'd better tell Kakashi-sensei."

"Nm," Hinata responded. The two teens headed back to the hotel.

 

* * *

Itachi landed on the roof of the building across from where team Kakashi's was staying. He smirked in satisfaction as he watched Naruto and Hinata enter the large hotel.  _"Found you,"_  he thought.  _"Now I just need the right opportunity to strike."_  He moved back from the edge and folded his arms across his chest. "Soon, Naruto we shall see if Orochimaru has truly succeeded in correcting the mistake he made fourteen years ago," he whispered in cruel curiosity.

 

* * *

Kakashi nodded in approval as Naruto and Hinata finished their report. "Alright then. We'll attack tomorrow night. For now, I want all of you to get some sleep."

The team nodded, then Sakura and Hinata left the room. Kakashi went to use the bathroom and Naruto and Sasuke sat down on their beds.

Naruto watched Hinata's shadow in the soft glow of her lantern, making sure to remember to turn away if she stood up. His gaze drifted for a moment to the tatami mats covering the floor and he suddenly had an idea. He stood up and grabbed the edge of one of the mats on the far side of the room.

"What are you doing, Dobe?" Sasuke asked in confusion as he watched his brother lift up the edge of the mat.

"Putting up a privacy wall," Naruto replied without stopping his work.

Confusion spread over Sasuke's face which was quickly replaced by amused understanding. "Don't want to risk seeing Hinata again, huh?"

Naruto stopped moving, made a strange sound and blushed. "Yeah," he said quickly without looking at Sasuke then continued on with his task.

Sasuke snickered, earning him a murderous glare from Naruto. "And how are you going to explain the mat if she wakes up before us and sees it?"

Naruto gritted his teeth. He hadn't thought about that. "I'll set the alarm for ten minutes early," he grumbled as he finished settling the mat into place.

"Heh," Sasuke said with a smirk before laying down.

Naruto frowned and sat down on the edge of his bed. He reached over to his night stand and picked up the small alarm clock, setting it to six-fifty am.

It was at that moment that Kakashi came waltzing back in the from the bathroom. He stopped short at seeing the tatami mat on the divider wall to the two rooms. It didn't take him long to figure out its purpose, however. He cocked an eyebrow, shrugged and got into his bed.

Naruto sighed in relief at not having been asked any more uncomfortable questions. He let his blond head hit the pillow and fell into an uneasy sleep.

 


	24. The Youkai Gang

 

TenTen and Neji breathed heavily as they tried their best to keep up with the blurs of speed that were Lee and Jiraiya. Twice now, they had felt the shame of being babied when Jiraiya and Lee had to slow down to make sure they weren't left behind and they were determined not to hold back the mission any further.

Jiraiya looked behind him at his slower subordinates. He lessened his pace just a little and Lee followed suit. Luckily, the two behind them seemed to not notice the drop in speed.  _"They're probably too tired to care,"_  Jiraiya thought just as they came to the volcano bridge.

Neji's immediate reaction to seeing the lake of lava under their intended path was to skid to a halt.

Jiraiya stopped when he realized he was missing a team member and turned around. "Oi, Neji! What are you just standing there for?!" he bellowed. When he didn't get an answer he frowned in irritation and ran back to the bridge entrance. "Neji, did you hear...me?" he said, finishing softly as he got a good look at the boy's face. Neji's eyes, if possible, looked even more ghostly than normal, and his entire face was frozen in terror. "Neji!" Jiraiya said loudly as he waved a hand in front of Neji's face.

"Neji-kun!" TenTen yelled as soon as she reached his position.

"Do you know what's going on here?" Jiraiya asked quickly.

TenTen nodded. "I think so. We need to get him out of sight of the lava," she instructed as she put Neji's arm over her shoulder. Lee got the idea and took the other side.

Once they were roughly one hundred feet from the bridge they set Neji down. TenTen took out her canteen, poured out some water onto her cupped hand and splashed Neji in the face. She was relieved to see him immediately come out of his daze. "Are you okay, Neji-kun?"

Neji closed his eyes for a moment; when he reopened them, he sighed angrily. "Yes."

"Would you two mind telling me what just happened?" Jiraiya said with his arms folded across his chest.

Neji and TenTen looked at each other, and then Neji turned his gaze toward his captain. "I'm...afraid of fire," he said, his voice dripping with self-loathing.

Both Lee and Jiraiya's eyes widened in surprise and confusion. "But...I've seen you fight enemies who use fire jutsu," Lee said.

"I've worked very hard to control it. I spend at least twenty minutes a day sitting in front of a lit fireplace," Neji replied in an even tone. "I thought I had gotten to a point where I could completely control my fear," he said angrily.

Jiraiya sighed. "I see...Unfortunately, we don't have time to wait for you to overcome this fear. I'm afraid you'll have to return to the village."

Neji nodded. "Understood." He rose to his feet.

"Neji-kun, are you sure you're okay with this?" Her brow was furrowed in concern. TenTen knew the idea of having to quit a mission would be highly detrimental to her friend's pride.

"If you are forced to help me across the bridge, the mission will be compromised. It's the only logical thing to do," Neji replied solemnly.

"Alright then...We'll see you when we get back," Lee said with a hearty clap to Neji's shoulder.

Neji simply nodded and ran off in the direction they had come from.

TenTen bit her lower lip as the remaining team members once again set off for Ganshou.  _"I'm sorry, Neji-kun."_

 

* * *

As the night sky began to lighten, Itachi watched with mild interest as his quarry surrounded an old building. He shifted his weight onto his left foot and pushed away the strand of hair that had been waving in his face for the last minute.  _"The coming battle should separate Naruto from Kakashi at some point. The time has come."_

 

* * *

"Thirty-nine now," Hinata reported in reference to the number of people inside the building.

Kakashi nodded in approval. "It seems we picked a good time for this." He looked around the area again for a moment. "Alright. Naruto, Hinata and I will go in from the roof level. Sasuke and Sakura, I want you stationed on the east and west sides of the building. You're to keep anyone from escaping the area." He noticed Sakura tense up and grit her teeth. "Is there a problem Sakura?" The girl in question quickly shook her head, embarrassed that she had been caught looking uncomfortable. "Alright then, let's move out," he commanded as he handed out their radio headsets.

Naruto, Hinata, and Kakashi jumped over to the roof of the gang's hideout. As Kakashi turned the knob to open the door Sasuke's voice crackled over his headset. 'Sasuke, in position.' After a second Sakura chimed in. 'Sakura, in position'. Kakashi nodded. "Roger," and nearly pulled open the door before thinking better of it. "Hinata, your Byakugan."

Hinata nodded and aimed her enhanced vision at the door. "It's wired to explode."

Kakashi frowned. "What kind of device is it?"

"Contact point," Hinata answered.

"Hmm. Can you cut the wires with jyuken?" Kakashi asked.

Hinata chewed her lower lip and released her Byakugan. "I...I don't know. Neji-nii-san is better at jyuken than me."

Naruto put a gentle hand on his girlfriend's shoulder. "I believe in you, Hinata-chan," he said with a winning smile.

Her cheeks flushed pink, but she smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Naruto-kun." She gave him a quick peck on the lips. Naruto blushed a little as Hinata turned around to face the door and re-activated her Byakugan. She swallowed and raised her hand, causing it to glow just before bringing it down in a cutting motion near the door's latch. She saw the wires separate and she nodded in satisfaction. After making two more cuts at points around the edge of the doorframe, she turned around and smiled at her companions. "It's safe now."

Naruto grinned. "Good job," he said, giving her a gentle squeeze.

"Follow me. Hinata, you take point," Kakashi said quietly as he opened the door and went inside.

As Naruto and the others descended the staircase he felt uneasy. "Calm down, Naruto. They're all bad guys. You can't make a mistake here."

Hinata noticed Naruto's expression and frowned.  _"I wonder if he's thinking about that girl."_  They came close to the end of the stairs. She suddenly held out her arm and put her finger to her lips. "There are two guards pacing the room," she whispered.

Kakashi looked at Naruto. "Take the one on the right. I'll take the other." Naruto nodded and the two shot forward from the stairwell opening.

Kakashi knife-chopped his target in the back of the neck, while Naruto simply punched his opponent dead in the face. Kakashi sighed as Naruto gently laid the woman he had just knocked out on the floor. "Couldn't you practice at least a little finesse?"

Naruto simply grinned. "Not my style," he replied, causing his sensei to sigh again and shake his head.

Hinata looked through the floor below them. "Six on the floor below us," she informed the rest of the team.

Kakashi pulled out a kunai. "Alright, from here on in, we fight."

 

* * *

Lee sped over the rooftops at a break-neck speed.  _"Sakura-san...please be alright."_

Jiraiya sighed as he watched Lee pull further from him and TenTen. "OI, Lee!"

Lee stopped in his tracks, which required a rather long skid, and turned back. "Hai?"

"Try to stay with the team, alright?" Jiraiya said with a cocked eyebrow.

Lee's face took on a downcast look. "Gomen...It's just that...Sakura-san..."

Jiraiya gave the green-clad ninja a lopsided grin. "We'll make it in time."

Lee nodded, and the group continued their search.

 

* * *

Naruto, Hinata, and Kakashi burst into the room, causing the guards to pull out various weapons. A teenage male pulled out a two-way radio. "WE'RE UNDER ATTA..." was all he managed to get out before Hinata used a ground level spin kick to sweep his legs out from underneath him.

The other five guards responded to Hinata's attack on their comrade by surrounding the girl, but they didn't get a chance to attack as three Narutos came at them. One clone delivered a punch to a male guard's windpipe, sending him choking and gagging to the floor. The real Naruto swung his fist backward, punching a boy in his mid-teens in the ribcage. The boy's bones broke with a sickening snap.

A girl sporting a nasty looking set of jagged-edged, bladed gloves swung at Naruto's third clone. The clone bent its body backward to avoid it, but was hit from behind by an arrow from a crossbow. Kakashi punched the assailant in the bridge of the nose, and then threw him against the wall, knocking him out.

Hinata used her jyuken on the girl with the claws and had her unconscious in seconds.

Naruto smiled at Hinata.  _"She's gotten more confident."_  He turned to the final guard; a woman in her mid-thirties with waist-length, blonde hair. As he began to throw a roundhouse kick towards her head he heard her utter a name that made him wish he had been able to stop in time.

With her mouth and eyes wide open at the young, blonde ninja attacking her, she spoke one word. "M...Mina-to?" she barely managed to say before his foot connected with her head.

Naruto was so shocked at hearing his father's name spoken by this total stranger that he nearly didn't land his kick correctly and stumbled as he regained his balance. He ran over to the woman and picked up her head in his arms. "Wh...what did you say?"

The woman used all her remaining strength to reach a hand up and gently touch Naruto's cheek. "How...You...?" she said before losing her battle with unconsciousness.

Naruto shook the woman. "Hey, how do you know Chichiuei?! OI!" he yelled in vain at the sleeping woman.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata yelled to get his attention

Naruto turned around to see more gang members flooding from the doorway. Realizing he didn't have time for solving mysteries, he simply grinned. "Heh, time for a workout."

 

* * *

Sakura used a chakra filled punch on the gang member in front of her. He hit the wall with a crunch, spider web cracks extending out from the point of impact. Sakura smiled in satisfaction.  _"I'm really starting to get the hang of that."_ She suddenly noticed someone climbing out of a window midway up the side of the building. "Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke finished knocking out his current opponent and looked down. "I'm on it!" he replied, making the two-story jump to the fire escape where his target was standing.

The red-headed girl ducked Sasuke's kick and pulled out a pair of sais. "Outta my way or I'm gonna kick your ass!"

Sasuke smirked. "Heh, you better have the skill to back up your mouth," he said as he settled into a classic back stance.

Sakura saw the girl bring out her sais. "Sasuke-kun, be careful!"

Sasuke blocked his opponent's sai thrust with his kunai. "I know that! Watch your post!" he yelled back in irritation.

Sakura blushed in embarrassment and hurried back to her side of the building.

 

* * *

"KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" A second Naruto appeared and began spinning the chakra onto Naruto's hand. "RASENGAN!" He charged forward at the attackers who were still in the stairwell, sending unconscious bodies flying left and right.

Kakashi sighed, shook his head and turned to Hinata. "Let's hurry and take these two out so we can follow him."

Hinata nodded and made an affirmative sound.

A man with broad shoulders and messy brown hair smirked. "Let's hurry and take these two out, huh? You honestly think it'll be that easy?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I can tell just from looking at your stance that you're not a threat."

A black-haired man next to the one who had spoken gritted his teeth. "You'll regret that!"

Kakashi yawned. "Yes yes. Let's just get this over with," he said as he lazily slid into his basic stance.

The brown-haired man ran at Kakashi, who simply side-stepped and thrust his arm out and forward, giving the man a solid punch to the kidneys. The thug coughed up blood, doubled over and fell to the floor in an undignified heap.

The black-haired man looked from Kakashi to his friend on the floor and dropped into a floor-kissing bow. "I surrender!"

Kakashi smiled. "Good choice," he said, bringing out a rope. "Hinata, can you handle tying them up while I check on Naruto?"

Hinata nodded. "Hai."

Kakashi handed her the rope and disappeared through the doorway.

 

* * *

Sakura had just finished delivering a high side kick to a woman's head when she noticed a green blur in the distance, heading toward them at lightning speed. She squinted against the sunlight.  _"Lee...kun?"_  As the blur got closer she could tell for sure. "Sasuke-kun! Lee-kun is coming!" she yelled excitedly at the raven-haired boy.

"Nani?!" Sasuke turned around just in time to see Lee only about six hundred feet away, with TenTen and Jiraiya trailing not far behind. He waved a hand in the air to get their attention. "Lee, this way!" he yelled.

Lee turned his head in the direction of a voice he barely caught over the howling of the wind in his ears and turned toward it. He smiled when he saw who it was. "Jiraiya-sama, they're over there!" Lee yelled behind him as he sped off toward Sasuke and Sakura.

 

* * *

Hinata took extra care tying up the woman who had said the Fourth's name.  _"Who_ _ **are**_ _you?"_  she thought. She looked around the room at her work. Once she was satisfied that they weren't going anywhere, she ran towards the sounds of fighting emanating from the hallway.

 

* * *

Lee landed on the rooftop and ran to Sakura. "Are you alright?" he puffed.

"Hai, I'm fine! Go inside and help the others!" Sakura replied.

Jiraiya shook his head. "TenTen and I will take over out here. You and Lee go."

Lee and Sakura gave Jiraiya a puzzled look but hurried inside.

Jiraiya breathed a sigh of relief. _"That was close. If those two were separated I'd never have heard the end of Lee's whining."_

* * *

Itachi watched Jiraiya's team with irritation as they landed on the roof of the building across the way. He hadn't expected the presence of a sannin and knew that Jiraiya and Kakashi together would prove to be more hassle than it was worth.  _"I'll have to wait until Jiraiya leaves before making my move,"_  he thought as he narrowed his eyes.

 

* * *

The walls of the first floor of the building had a few speckles of blood on them by the time Hinata had gotten to the bottom of the stairs. It looked like Naruto and Kakashi had already cleared at least five more of the gang members.  _"That leaves twenty-five. Still a lot for the three of us though,"_  she thought as she chewed her lower lip.

"Hinata! Don't just stand there!" Kakashi scolded.

Hinata, ashamed at having been caught doing anything but her job, rushed into the fray.

 

* * *

Jiraiya watched Itachi out of the corner of his eye; easily seeing through the genjutsu that was making the Uchiha look like an old rooftop generator.  _"So, he's here already. I'd better warn Kakashi as soon as I have the chance."_

 

* * *

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura yelled over the din.

Kakashi whipped his head around. "Sakura, why are you away from your post?!" He took down a woman with a roundhouse kick then noticed that Rock Lee was right behind Sakura.  _"Odd. I wonder why Tsunade would send re-enforcements."_

"Kakashi-sensei, the Godaime sent us to inform you that Uchiha Itachi is on his way here to capture Naruto-kun," Lee said.

"What?!" Kakashi exclaimed as he blocked a punch from a male assailant.

Naruto was surrounded by a group of six thugs. "Kage bunshin no jutsu!" A perfect clone of Naruto poofed into existence and swirled the chakra on Naruto's palm. He jumped into the air. The clone grabbed him by the ankles and swung him in a circle. "Rasengan Jiten!"

Kakashi ducked as one of Naruto's attackers sailed by his head. "Naruto, watch what you're doing."

"Sorry!" Naruto called back as he bounced off the floor with his hands and used the momentum to kick another thug.

"Lee, who else is with you?" Kakashi asked.

"TenTen and Jiraiya-sama," Lee reported. At that precise moment, Naruto lost his balance and took a punch to the face.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata called out in alarm. She flat-palmed Naruto's attacker in the windpipe and offered Naruto her hand. "Are you okay?"

"Y...yeah," Naruto said as he used Hinata's counterweight to pull himself to a standing position.  _"Ero-sannin, why are you here?"_

Lee made an aerial cartwheel, bringing down his feet at the end onto an enemy's shoulders, slamming her to the floor. "Only five left!"

Kakashi crinkled his eyes in concern.  _"This isn't right, it's too easy."_  He blocked a thug's dagger with his kunai. "Everyone, be careful! We haven't encountered the ninja members yet!"

 

* * *

Jiraiya saw ten flashes of color shoot into the building through the main entrance. "Sasuke, did you see that?"

Sasuke nodded. "Hai."

"I think it's time you headed inside. I'll stand guard."

Sasuke nodded again, dropped down to the fire escape and disappeared through a window.

He glanced in the direction he'd last seen Itachi, but he was gone.  _"Hmm. Must have decided Kakashi and I together were a problem."_  Jiraiya suddenly got a sickening smile on his face and rubbed his hands together.  _"Hm hmm. If he's no longer a problem I can check out the women here,"_  he thought. A small trickle of drool leaked from the corner of his mouth.

 

* * *

Sakura concentrated her chakra to her right hand and sliced into the arm of the boy in front of her. He howled with pain, but maneuvered behind her, meaning to put her in a chokehold. Sakura simply flipped him forward over her head. He landed on the floor, coughed up some blood, and then lay silent. Sakura was surprised when she heard clapping and looked behind her to see who it was. There were now several new figures concealed by the shadows of the entryway.

"Very nice, Kakashi," said a woman's voice.

Kakashi cocked an eyebrow at hearing this new person use his name.

"Oh, don't look so surprised, there's hardly a ninja in the entire Fire Country who doesn't know who you are," said the woman as she walked out of the shadows. She had shoulder-length, blonde hair and blue eyes. She wore a simple pair of black training pants and a skin-tight black leotard.

Kakashi squinted. "You...look familiar."

The woman cocked an eyebrow. "I ought to, you're the one who introduced my brother to that detestable woman," she nearly spat.

Kakashi's eyes went wide. " Noriko-chan?!"

"Very good, Kakashi," Noriko said with a venomous glare.

"Kakashi-sensei, who is she?" Naruto asked, looking at the woman intently.

As Noriko's subordinates stepped out from the shadows Kakashi expelled a long puff of air. "Naruto, this is Noriko...Namikaze Noriko..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ::runs and locks self in reader proof room until next update::


	25. For the Clan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From now on, when text is underlined it means that someone is performing a series of seals. I also made a bunch of new jutsus for this.

 

 

Naruto froze. _(("Namikaze Noriko...")) "_ Nam...i...kaze?" he choked out. 

Noriko's eyes widened when they came to rest on Naruto's face. "Oh my God—It's true..." After a moment of staring at Naruto in awe, she whipped her head back toward Kakashi. "You son of a BITCH! You LIED to us!"

"Noriko-chan, it's not that simple..." Kakashi began, just as Sasuke came into the room.

"Don't you DARE use 'chan' when speaking to me! And it IS that simple! He's standing right THERE!" she yelled as she jabbed a finger in Naruto's direction.

Sasuke looked confused. "Sakura...what...?" he asked softly.

Sakura put a finger to her lips. "Shh!"

Sasuke frowned but stayed silent.

"Even I didn't know who he truly was until recently," Kakashi replied evenly.

"Naruto..." Noriko nearly whispered, her expression softening. "I'm...I'm your aunt. Minato was my brother," she said as her eyes misted over.

Naruto's eyes went as wide as dinner plates. "My...aunt...?"

Noriko knelt down and held out her arms. "Naruto...come here..." she said with a tearful smile.

Kakashi rushed in between the two. "Don't, Naruto!" he said as he glanced backward at him. "I can only imagine how you feel, but she is not the kind person she wants you to think she is."

"FUCK you, Kakashi! He is  _ **my**_  blood!"

"Blood or not, he doesn't need someone who hurts the innocent!"

"I was protecting my family line!"

"Even the Hyuugas wouldn't dishonor themselves by trying to  _murder_  someone just for being in love with a member of their clan."

"Would someone tell me what the HELL is going on?" Naruto yelled.

Kakashi sighed heavily. "Before the attack on Kyuubi, there were three highly prominent clans in Konoha...The Hyuuga, the Uchiha...and the Namikaze."

"There was a whole clan?" Naruto asked.

"Not just a clan, Naruto—one of the greatest clans in history!" Noriko said.

Kakashi rolled his eyes. "Because most of the Namikaze were anbu, they were put on the front lines of the battle against Kyuubi," he sighed sadly, "They were nearly wiped out. Only three remain...you, Noriko and your cousin. The latter of which I assume is the blonde woman upstairs."

Understanding dawned on Naruto's face. "So  _that's_  how she knew Chichiuei."

"Noriko heard about your birth and sent your cousin to retrieve you after the battle. Since I thought you were dead, that's the information I gave her," Kakashi explained, shooting a pointed glare at Noriko.

"Naruto, come here," Noriko nearly commanded.

"No!" Kakashi countered urgently, "She hurt your mother!"

At hearing these words Naruto stopped in his tracks. "What?" he asked in disbelief.

Kakashi rubbed his tired, visible eye with his fingers. "Your mother was my instructor at the academy. When I was put on Minato's team after I graduated, he asked me to introduce him to her. They connected right away, and in less than six months your father was showing my team and I the engagement ring he planned to give her."

"No one expected the relationship to get that far." He looked at Naruto, a hard look entering his eyes. "There's something you have to know about the Namikaze...They basically made the Hyuugas look like a loving clan."

Naruto's eyes became wider for a split second as he sucked in a breath. "What do you mean?"

"Members of the clan were only allowed to marry within it. When the head of the clan learned of Minato's plans to propose to Kushina, they sent Noriko...to kill her," Kakashi finished with venom in his voice.

Naruto's face filled with horror as he backed away from the woman who had her arms held out to him just minutes before. "You...you tried to kill my mom?"

Noriko's expression showed the panic that was entering her heart. "Naruto...you have to understand...I..." she sputtered as she reached out a trembling hand toward him.

Naruto slapped Noriko's hand away. "NO!"

Noriko's eyes filled with tears. "The purity of the clan  _had_  to be protected! There was no other way!"

Naruto lowered his face so that his hair covered his features. "I don't give a  _damn_  about 'clan purity'! You tried to kill my mother! I would never've been born!" Naruto screeched as he raised his head with a violent snap.

Noriko suddenly pulled her hand back and simply stared at Naruto. "Wh...what's the matter with your eyes?"

Kakashi pushed Noriko out of the way so he could get a look at what had stunned the woman. "What the hell?"

Naruto's eyes had changed from their normal cerulean blue, not to the eyes of the Kyuubi, but to something Kakashi had never seen before. Both of them were raven black with a vivid purple ring on the outer edge. The purple streaked into the black, making it look like the purple was a fire that was reaching for a small, white dot in the center.

Sasuke and Sakura moved to Kakashi's position. Sakura gasped. Sasuke simply stared. "Naruto...you..."

"What is it?" Naruto asked.

Sakura reached into her weapons pouch, pulled out a small mirror, and held it up so Naruto could see. His knee-jerk reaction to his reflection was to jump backward a few steps.

"What's going on, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"I don't know, Sakura. But this isn't the issue we need to worry about right now."

"You're right, Kakashi, it isn't," Noriko replied with a dangerous tone. Her hands flashed through a series of seals. "Doton- Kane Genken no Jutsu! (A/N- Earth style- Steel Wardog technique)"

The floor began to shake and crack. As small sections of it broke away, what looked like chunks of raw metal ore flew up through the holes and began forming into vicious looking steel dogs about the size of wolves.

All the Konoha ninja now stood back to back, with kunai at the ready. "Kane no Jutsu?!" Kakashi exclaimed.  _"I thought no one had found a way to do it!"_  he thought as the sound of metal scraping against metal grated on his ears.

"You see, Kakashi...I will not allow you to take my brother's only child back to that pathetic hole you call a hidden village," Noriko spat.

The now completed metal dogs lunged at their targets, carefully avoiding damage to Naruto. Everyone slashed at the attackers with their kunai, but the most they could manage to do was push them back.

Noriko smirked as she watched Kakashi's team. "The  _great_  Kakashi," she said with a mocking chuckle. "I would've expected a more intelligent plan from you than that."

Naruto barely jumped out of the way in time to avoid one of the dogs as it tried to body check him in an attempt to knock him out.  _"These things are fast,"_  he thought.

TenTen hopped backward to avoid being disemboweled, then screamed as another dog bit down on the end of her foot. Blood speckled the floor under the spot where she fell.

Lee was instantly at TenTen's side. He picked her up and brought her over to the stairwell. As he began to take her shoe off to inspect the damage, TenTen scolded him.

"Lee, forget my foot!" she said as tears of pain leaked out of her eyes. "Help the others!"

Lee immediately went into a saluting pose. "Hai!"

After Lee had left, TenTen took some medical wrap out of her equipment pouch and bandaged her foot. She gritted her teeth and stood up, inhaling sharply from the pain as she did so, and ran back to the fight.

Lee saw TenTen fighting and smiled in approval. "That's it TenTen! The fire of youth shall not be put out!"

Tenten rolled her eyes and dodged a steel paw.

Beads of sweat began to appear on Sasuke's forehead.  _"This isn't good, these things are fast, and we can't seem to damage them!"_  His eyes suddenly widened with a spark of inspiration. He made his favorite series of seals. "Katon- Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" A ball of flame shot from his mouth at one of the dogs; but instead of melting it as he had intended, it only served to make the dog scalding hot to the touch. "Shit!" he cursed as he moved out of the dog's way.

Naruto slowly began to notice that he was the only one the dogs were not trying to maim. "KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!"

Noriko smirked as her nephew increased in number by five.  _"As expected from a Namikaze."_

"Everyone...form a small group!" Naruto yelled to his comrades.

Kakashi looked up at Naruto's sudden 'command'.  _"What is he up to?"_  he thought as he and the others huddled together.

Naruto quickly had his clones surround his friends.

"What the hell?!" Noriko said.

Naruto folded his arms in defiance. "Now what are you gonna do?!"

"Naruto! Move out of the way!" Noriko commanded.

"I thought so. You don't wanna hurt me," said all of Naruto's clones at once. He smiled in satisfaction as his aunt gritted her teeth and made a short sound of irritation. "Now, call off your dogs."

"NO! You are coming home!"

"What home?!" Naruto shot back. "You live in an abandoned apartment building! Not to mention you're a criminal!"

Noriko frowned in shame for a short moment before becoming angry. "Shut up! You don't know anything!"

From inside the 'Naruto wall' Hinata kept her Byakugan trained on Noriko. Suddenly, she noticed Noriko's chakra flow waver for a second. "Naruto-kun," she whispered.

Naruto didn't turn around but shifted his eyes toward Hinata in interest.

"She has to concentrate to maintain her jutsu. When you upset her just now, her concentration dropped. I...I think if you make her mad enough she may drop the jutsu."

" _Gotchya, Hinata-chan,"_  Naruto thought. "I know you almost killed my Mother! I know  _she_  was a better person than you!"

"Naruto!" Noriko raged, barely remembering to keep her hands folded in the serpent seal.

"I know you've hurt people I care about!"

"Naruto!"

"I HATE YOU!"

"NO!" Noriko yelled, forgetting her seal and balling her hands into fists in front of her.

Naruto dispelled his clones and everyone he had been protecting resumed their battle stances.

" _Dammit,"_  Noriko thought as her dogs reverted back to the raw ore they had once been.  _"I don't have enough chakra left to recreate them."_  She let out an angry puff of air through her nose. "Takeshi," she said tersely to the large man on her right. "Kill the rest, but damage Naruto as little as possible."

"Hai, Noriko-sama," Takeshi replied. He and the other five ninja that had arrived with Noriko hurried from the shadows and made a wide circle around the group of Konoha ninja.

"Sougu fujin heki!" TenTen pulled out two scrolls from her equipment pouch and flung her hands forward, causing the scrolls to unroll onto the floor. From the open scrolls, various weapons appeared in puffs of smoke, jutting upwards and taking out one of the two women in Noriko's team.

"CHISA!" yelled Takeshi. He stared in open-mouthed horror at the woman on the floor, who was impaled in various places; all of them fatal. He rounded on TenTen. "DAMN YOU TO HELL!" he yelled before charging at her.

TenTen tried to move out of the way, but when she moved her damaged foot she was greeted by a sharp twinge of pain that caused her to drop to the floor.

Hinata focused her chakra through the tenketsu, stabbing Takeshi with small, needle-width poles of it. The burgundy-haired man winced as each of the needles cut through his body and exited the other side. "Aaaaugh!"

As Hinata attacked Takeshi, Naruto suddenly felt a throbbing pain behind his eyes and his vision blurred for a moment. When he could see clearly again, the air was filled with thousands of tiny, glowing purple dots. "Huh?" He reached out a hand toward the dots, but all he managed to do was make them swirl around. After a few seconds of aimlessly swatting at the dots, an idea struck him.  _"I can use chakra to stick to walls. I wonder if it'd work on these things."_

Naruto put his hands together in the tiger seal, focusing his chakra to his hands. They glowed in a swirling mass of red and blue. He reached out toward the dots again...and grabbed one. He stared at it for a second.  _"I wonder what would happen if I grabbed a bunch of these?"_  He held out his left hand and began pushing dots into it with his right. It was very easy since the air was thick with them, and it wasn't long before he had several hundred in his hand.

Sasuke had just ducked under a woman's roundhouse kick when he noticed Naruto batting at the air with his right hand.  _"What the hell is that dobe up to now?"_

Naruto stared at the mass of dots he was holding. He decided to see if he could squish them together and squeezed them as hard as he could. When he opened his hand he held a snow white sphere just a little smaller than a golf ball. "What is that?" he mused.

Sasuke was getting irritated that Naruto seemed to be doing nothing but staring at his hand. "OI! Dobe! You gonna fight or what?!" he yelled as he dodged a punch aimed at his midriff.

Naruto blinked his eyes as he was snapped out of his thoughts by Sasuke's voice. "Shit!" He tossed the ball behind him, intending to join the fight, but when the sphere hit the wall it exploded, sending him sailing through the air and into the woman who had been fighting Sasuke.

Sasuke looked at the direction of the explosion, then back at Naruto. "What the hell did you do?" he asked in wide-eyed confusion as Naruto began to get to his feet.

Naruto looked at the wall behind where he had been standing moments before. There was a gaping hole in the wall. His jaw dropped. "That little thing did that?"

"What little thing?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto rapidly shook his head. "I'll explain later!" he replied as he dove back into the fight.

Sasuke sighed in defeat and joined his brother.

TenTen was getting irritated. Most of her attacks relied on open space and the crowded battle conditions made them too risky to use. She pulled out a scroll from her equipment pouch, unrolled it and performed a series of seals. "Souga meshi! (A/N- Equipment summon)" She touched the fairly short length of paper and a pair of nunchucks appeared in a puff of smoke. She swung at a male ninja. He ducked out of the way, but couldn't avoid the second nunchuck that hit him in the ribs, cracking a few of them.

The man gritted his teeth and hit TenTen with an uppercut to the jaw. She countered with a nunchuck to his kidneys.

"Sanza, stop playing around!" Noriko yelled in irritation.

Sanza glared at his leader for a split second, then went back to his fight. Rat, tiger, hare. "Araihada No Jutsu! (A/N- Rough skin technique)" His skin was suddenly covered in sharp bumps. He lashed out at TenTen and raked his right forearm across her left bicep.

TenTen cried out in pain as thin peals of her skin fell to the floor. She grabbed her bicep, blood leaking through her fingers.

"TenTen-chan!" Sakura yelled as she hurried toward TenTen. Her path was quickly blocked by Noriko's last remaining female comrade who jumped over her, grabbed her dress at the shoulders, and used the momentum to throw her over the woman's shoulder and into a nearby support beam.

Sakura coughed a small amount of blood before wiping her mouth and standing back up again. Breathing heavily, she looked to where TenTen was and saw her get hit with Sanza's arm again; this time right across the stomach.  _"Dammit, I can't get to her. If only there were two of me."_  Her eyes flashed wide open as she had an idea.

Ox, serpent, hare, dragon. "Tamashii Guujin No Jutsu! (A/N-Spirit Puppet Technique)" Sakura felt a bit light headed, but as she looked to her right she knew her jutsu had worked. Next to her was a second Sakura. It resembled her, but it looked like it had been taken out of a black and white photo. Sakura appeared satisfied at having pulled off the jutsu.

The woman Sakura had been fighting looked surprised for a moment, but quickly recovered and brought down her kunai in a wide sweeping motion. The black and white Sakura raised its own dark kunai and blocked the attack.

Sakura ran to help TenTen. She gathered chakra to her hand and punched Sanza in his side, sending him flying.

TenTen collapsed to her knees. "Arigato."

Sakura laced her arm under Tenten's. "Here, lean on me."

TenTen nodded and the two girls walked in tandem to the far side of the room.

As Sakura began healing TenTen's stomach, TenTen watched the black and white Sakura fight. "Neh, Sakura? Why does your bunshin look so weird?"

Sakura smiled. "Because that's not a bunshin. It's part of my bloodline limit."

"Bloodline limit!? Since when do you have a bloodline limit?"

"I just found out myself, a month or so ago. My spirit puppet is better than a bunshin. It doesn't disappear unless I get knocked out. I can only make one though, and it takes a lot of chakra," Sakura replied as she switched to healing TenTen's arm.

"Very cool," TenTen said with a grin.

Sakura moved to start on TenTen's foot when she felt a hand on hers. "My foot's not that bad. We need to get back to the fight," TenTen said as she pushed Sakura's hand away.

Sakura nodded and stood up. "Let's go then."

Noriko hopped backward to dodge Hinata's Jyuken.  _"Damn, she's fast for such a little thing. Time to get serious."_  Horse, bird, tiger. "Katon: Jiyuuryuusen Goukakyuu no Jutsu! (A/N-Flame Type: Streamlined Powerful Fireball)" A stream of fire, much thinner than a normal Goukakyuu no Jutsu, shot out at Hinata.

Hinata's eyes widened and she threw her arms in front of her face in preparation for the pain. But the pain never came. Instead, she heard a boy screaming and opened her eyes to find Naruto covering her with his body, protecting her from the blast. "NARUTO-KUN!" she shrieked, tears filling her eyes.

Noriko's eyes were as wide as they could get. She dropped her hands to her sides. "No..."

The back of Naruto's clothes was gone, completely burned away from the waist up. His back, shoulders, and arms were all a horrible shade red and covered with bleeding blisters. With tears streaming down her face, Hinata quickly, yet gently, lowered him to the floor. Working very hard to control her emotions, she began healing him.

"STOP FIGHTING!" Noriko yelled.

Merely out of the oddness of the command, everyone froze in their tracks.

"Stop fighting. I don't want to risk her losing her concentration," Noriko explained as she stared at Hinata and Naruto.

Upon seeing what had caused Noriko to stop the fight, the Konoha team ran to Naruto's side amid a chorus of his name yelled in various ways.

"I...I don't understand. Why did I get burned?" Naruto gasped out hoarsely.

"What do you mean,  **"Why did I get burned?"**! It's because you jumped in front of fire, Dobe!" Sasuke yelled with irritation and worry.

"You don't understand Sasuke," Kakashi said, "Naruto has never been burned before."

"What?"

"The Kyuubi protected him from heat. Why do you think you couldn't kill him with your fire jutsus?"

Sasuke gritted his teeth and looked down at the memory.

"Not only that, but he doesn't know how to heal himself. The Kyuubi always did it for him," Kakashi added.

"Hinata-chan...It won't stop burning," Naruto croaked out as tears of pain filled his eyes. He had never hurt so badly for so long in his entire life.

" _This isn't good. The burns just keep progressing!" Hinata thought in near panic._

Noriko had both hands over her mouth, sobbing loudly. "Please...Please don't let him die..." she begged Hinata.

Hinata's head snapped upwards. She glared at Noriko with eyes that told her that if she didn't shut up,  _she_  would be the one who would not survive.

Noriko took an instinctive step backward. _"She...she loves him..."_

" _He's getting weaker...What am I missing!?"_  she thought. "Byakugan!" Through her enhanced vision, she saw that Naruto's heart was fibrillating. "Oh no!" She increased the amount of healing chakra to the burns, but it didn't help; his heart stopped. "NO! Sakura-san! Help me! He's dying!"

Angry at herself for not thinking of helping sooner, Sakura dropped to her knees and pushed all the chakra she could into Naruto's body.  _"Please don't die. Please don't die."_

The combined healing powers of both girls began to weave back together the damaged skin and muscles, but it was to no avail. Naruto drew in a large, shaky breath...and then lay silent.

Hinata shook her head in disbelief. "No...n-n-no! NARUTO-KUUUUUUUN!"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ::Dives back into reader proof room and adds several new locks::
> 
> This is what Naruto's new eyes look like:   
> 


	26. No Time to Breath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GORE WARNING! Someone commits seppuku in this chapter. For those of you who know how that is done, you also know it's very gory. I apologize, but I like it for the plot.

 

"NO! No PLEASE!" Hinata begged Naruto's lifeless form.

Noriko's mouth fell open in disbelief. After a few seconds, she brought both of her palms up in front of her eyes. "Again...I failed to protect the clan...again." Her gaze shifted down to the hilt of a short sword strapped around her waist. After a moment she removed it from its sheath and spoke softly. "Takeshi..."

"Hai?"

"I want you to be my kaishaku (A/N-person who helps with the ritual suicide of a friend)..."

Takeshi's eyes widened in shock and horror. "Please, Noriko-sama. That's not necessary!"

"I killed my brother's only child, Takeshi. Please...help me die respectably," Noriko answered as she stared at the blade.

"I..."

"You're the only one skilled enough with a sword...please."

Takeshi's hands balled into shaking fists. He squeezed his eyes shut. "I will do as you ask." He pulled out his sword and held it level with the back of Noriko's neck. "I love you."

"I know...and I'm sorry." Noriko grabbed her short sword with both hands and aimed it at her stomach. "Forgive me, Minato." She squeezed her eyes shut and drove the blade into the left side of her stomach up to the hilt. She then pulled the sword to the right and back to the middle. As she pulled the blade upwards, spilling her intestines onto her lap ( It was at this moment that TenTen vomited), Takeshi cleanly cut through her neck so that it was connected only by a small strip of skin at the front.

Hands shaking, Takeshi dropped the sword. As it clattered to the floor he turned to face Kakashi. "Will you...allow us to leave with her body?"

Kakashi nodded in agreement. "Nhm."

Takeshi removed his knee-length coat and wrapped Noriko's body in it before taking her into his arms. "Kakashi, you should know, she only thought she was doing what was best for her clan." he turned to the other two remaining members of his group. "Let's go."

Kakashi watched as Takashi and the others walked away.  _It's been a long time since I have seen someone commit seppuku. Perhaps she will have honor in her next life._  He looked over at Naruto. "Minato-sensei...it's like you've died a second time," he said as his visible eye misted over.

Sakura and Hinata were both crying loudly. Nearby, TenTen sank to the floor. "It's like a bad dream," she said softly as she stared at Naruto's face. She was sad, but for some reason, she just didn't cry.

"Naruto-kun...I will never let anyone forget your courage," Lee said as tears soaked his cheeks.

Sasuke broke everyone out of their grieving trance with an angry, animalistic scream. He quickly closed the short distance between Naruto and himself and dropped to the floor next to Naruto's head. "Wake up, damn you! You've never given up on anything in your life! FIGHT!" he screamed and punched the floor.

 _That's right. Naruto-kun would never give up._  Hinata raised her head and sniffed back her tears. "I won't give up either." She put both her hands over the area of Naruto's heart.  _Tsunade-sama, forgive me. I must break my promise._

Sakura saw what Hinata was doing and recognized it immediately. She grabbed Hinata's hands. "No, Hinata-chan!"

"I'm going to save him."

"Did Tsunade-sama have time to teach you the proper way to do it?"

Hinata frowned. "No."

"Then you'll die!"

"It's worth it."

"Wait...I know the basic way it works. Maybe...maybe we can figure it out on our own," Sakura pleaded.

Hinata looked skeptical but she agreed. "Alright, what do we do?"

Sakura scooted over next to Hinata. "We have to change our chakra into electricity and shock the entire nervous system."

"Okay."

Hinata and Sakura put their hands over Naruto's heart. As their hands began to glow green all movement in the room stopped.

Sasuke's tears slowed as he held his breath in hope.  _Come on, Ototo (A/N- Younger brother)._

Hinata suddenly felt a change in her chakra.  _That's it!_ she thought. She pushed as much chakra into the jutsu as possible. She knew that if they didn't hurry, not only were their chances of reviving him going down, but the chance of brain damage was going up. Both girls were beginning to sweat profusely and could barely keep going.  _Come on, come on, come on..._ she chanted in her mind.

Naruto opened his eyes to find himself in the seal chamber. He stared at the now empty cage and let out a long sigh. "For the first time in my life, I wish you were here. I don't know how to heal myself." As he sat down in the shallow water and folded his arms over his knees a loud 'thump' resonated through the chamber. "What the hell was that?" His eyes widened. "Am I...?"

Hinata felt as though she could easily fly. "HIS HEART IS BEATING!" she squealed in pure joy.

"I know," Sakura said, fighting to keep down her own excitement. "Keep working."

Hinata immediately went back to concentrating, angry at herself for letting her emotions distract her form her work. Very slowly, the last remnants of the burns vanished, save for some slight scarring. Dizzy from both exhaustion and happiness, she collapsed onto Naruto's back.

"Hinata-chan...You're heavy," Naruto's voice croaked out.

Hinata squeaked and quickly sat up. "G...gomen!" When she didn't get a response she felt her earlier panic returning. "Naruto-kun?!" She checked his pulse and closed her eyes in relief. "He's...just sleeping," she informed the others as she wiped away the tears of joy that had begun to remoisten her already saturated cheeks.

Lee and TenTen jumped into the air and let out a whoop of joy, while Kakashi shook his head and smiled.  _He's got more lives than a cat._

Sasuke slid his right hand upwards over his face and let out a relieved sigh. "You're gonna make me old before my time, Dobe," he said affectionately to his brother's sleeping form.

Kakashi coughed. "Well, now that he's alright..." he changed the channel on his headset and put it on. "Mayor Kurata."

After a moment, Kurata's voice crackled over the receiver. "Yes?"

"The Youkai gang is no longer a problem. Please send officers to pick up their members. We are at the condemned apartment building on Ayu street."

"Arigato, Kakashi. I will be in debt to you for a long time to come."

Kakashi smiled. "You are very welcome. We'll stay here until the police arrive. Kakashi, out." he turned back to his teenaged companions. "Wait here for a few minutes," he ordered before disappearing up the stairs. He returned a few moments later with Naruto's cousin in his arms. "TenTen and Sasuke will wait here for the police. The rest of us will return to the hotel. Hinata, Lee...you two will carry Naruto. I'll take care of her," he said, looking down at the woman in his arms so that they would know who he was talking about. "Understood?"

"Hai," replied the group.

* * *

Jiraiya watched as all but Sasuke and TenTen left the building. He sighed, his earlier thoughts of checking out the local female population forgotten when he realized that even if Itachi was nowhere in sight, he was probably not out of the equation yet, and therefore he could not leave TenTen and Sasuke without a guard. He sulkily rested his cheek on his fist and waited for the police to arrive.

 

* * *

Kakashi hadn't seen anything, but he couldn't shake the feeling that they were being followed.  _It's probably Itachi,_ he thought with a sigh.  _I can't track him. I'll have to wait till he makes a move._  He knew this was the truth, but it was a truth he did not like at all.

Itachi knew there was no way Kakashi hadn't sensed him. Due to his superior genjutsu skills, however, he was not worried. It only meant that Kakashi would be on guard.

 

* * *

Hinata pulled the covers up to Naruto's chin and sat down next to him. After stroking his forehead a bit she turned her gaze toward the blonde woman lying a few feet away. "Are we handing her over to the anbu?"

Kakashi shook his head. "No. We're taking her to Tsunade-sama. I knew this woman very well, and I have a feeling she was only in the gang to act as Noriko's conscience. I want to give her a chance to explain herself."

"Kakashi-kun?" came the woman's weak voice. Kakashi moved next to her.

"Hai. How are you feeling, Tomoyo-chan?"

Tomoyo squeezed her eyes shut. "My head hurts." After thirty seconds or so of silence, her eyes snapped open. "Minato-kun! I saw Minato-kun!"

Kakashi smiled sadly. "I know."

Tomoyo didn't hide her surprise. "You know?"

"It may have looked like Minato-sensei, but the boy you saw...was his son."

"N...Naruto?!"

Kakashi nodded.

"B...but you told us he was dead!"

"I was...misinformed. Sandaime-sama and Minato-sensei agreed to keep his identity a secret to protect him. Minato-sensei had many enemies."

Tomoyo looked upset but sighed heavily in understanding. "I see. Where is...he...?" she began to ask before noticing Naruto was in the same room. She put her fingers over her lips as she let out a small gasp. "Except for those odd birthmarks on his cheeks, he looks...exactly like Minato-kun did when we were kids." Tears filled her eyes as she smiled. "Has Noriko-chan seen him?" she asked with a happy sniff.

Kakashi winced and looked down.

"Kakashi-kun?"

"Naruto jumped in front of one of her fire jutsus to protect this girl," Kakashi said, gesturing at Hinata. "He nearly died from the burns, and Noriko thought he  _was_  dead. She believed she had killed her brother's son. She...committed seppuku," he finished quietly.

Both of Tomoyo's hands flew to her face, and she began to cry loudly. "Noriko-chan!" she said in between cries of anguish, her voice muffled by her hands. After a few seconds she fell to her side on the bed, her hands still to her face.

Kakashi sat down on the bed. "I'm so sorry, Tomoyo-chan." He looked up at Hinata, Sakura, and Lee. "Forgive me, but could everyone leave us alone for a moment?"

"Sure, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura replied. And with that, the three teens got up and left the room.

As soon as the door slid shut, Kakashi laid down behind Tomoyo and wrapped his arms around her. She tensed for a moment in shock, but was quickly grateful for the gesture and squeezed his arms tightly.

Kakashi closed his eyes, trying his best to ignore how warm she felt.  _Now is not the time for old feelings._  And so he simply held her and let her cry.

 

* * *

"They'll probably be a while," Sakura said. "Why don't we go to the rec room?"

Lee and Hinata nodded. They were about to leave when they heard footsteps approaching them. "Sasuke," Lee called out as he waved.

"That was fast," Sakura commented as Sasuke and TenTen came to a stop near them.

"They're a well-organized force," Sasuke replied with a shrug as he made a motion to open the door to their room. He stopped when he felt Sakura's hand on his wrist.

"Kakashi-sensei is talking to Naruto's cousin. He told us to stay out for now," she explained.

"We were going to the rec room. You two want to join us?" Lee asked.

"Sure!" TenTen said. Sasuke gave only an indifferent shrug.

 

* * *

Hinata's small finger flicked the light switch to the 'on' position. The room had a tatami mat floor and contained a tennis table, pool table, TV, multiple armchairs and couches, and a shelf with several board games and many rows of books. She smiled. "It's nice."

"Lee, wanna play table tennis?" TenTen asked.

"Hai!" Lee replied.

Hinata walked over to the shelves and picked out a book. She snuggled into one of the huge armchairs and began to read.

Sakura sighed and looked at Sasuke. "Sasuke-kun?" she said after a moment.

"Yeah?"

"Can I...talk to you for a minute...alone?"

Sasuke frowned in curiosity. "Okay." He looked around, his gaze finally settling on a sliding glass door. "There. We can go to the terrace."

Sakura nodded and the two headed in that direction.

Lee noticed Sasuke and Sakura disappear through the terrace door and sighed.  _I should've known better than to get my hopes up._ He was broken from his thoughts when the ping pong ball hit him in the head.

"Oi, Lee-kun. Pay attention," TenTen said with her arms folded.

Lee blinked. "H-hai. Gomen."

 

* * *

Sasuke was getting impatient. For the last five minutes, all Sakura had done was stare outwards toward the city. "If you're not going to say anything, then I'm going inside."

"Gomen. I was just trying to think of how I want to say this." She boosted herself up onto the wide, wooden railing that surrounded the terrace. "You know I've loved you for a long time..."

Sasuke sighed.  _Not this again._  He ran his fingers backward through his hair. "Yeah, I know."

"Well, I...I know you don't care, but...I just wanted to tell you...that I don't love you anymore..." Sakura said as her eyes misted over.

Sasuke blinked his eyes rapidly in shock. "Seriously?"

Sakura nodded. "I realized it after I woke up from that coma."

"I'm glad. I didn't want you chasing me your whole life. You would've wound up alone," Sasuke replied seriously.

"Nhm. I know that now." After wiping her eyes she smiled. "I also wanted to tell you that I forgive you...for what happened at the Valley of End."

Sasuke smiled in relief. "Thank you. I didn't want to lose one of the few friends I have."

"I'm happy you said that. Sometimes I wasn't sure you even thought _that_ much of me."

"I didn't want you to think we had anything more than friendship. I'm sorry."

"I understand," Sakura replied with a nod.

"Well, I'm going back inside. You coming?"

Sakura sniffed. "No. I think I'm gonna stay out here for a while."

"Okay," Sasuke said with a small smile.

Sakura stared after him as Sasuke left, feeling a little sad that her first love no longer had her affections; even if he didn't.

 

* * *

As Kakashi held Tomoyo, he suddenly realized that she had stopped crying and her breathing had slowed. She was asleep. He smiled and stroked her forehead. "Sleep well, Tomoyo-chan."

He got up from the bed and pulled the covers over her. "I suppose it's time to retrieve the troops," he said as he began to head for the door.

Suddenly, the room was dark and so was the hall beyond it.  _"What the hell?"_  He grabbed a kunai and a lantern and opened the door. In the hallway, the sound of light sobbing reached his ears. He looked to his right and saw a small girl huddled on the floor. He approached her cautiously. "Are you okay?"

In an instant, the small girl's hand had an iron grip on his wrist. She turned her head and looked at Kakashi. He was not surprised to see the mangekyou sharingan staring back at him. "Itachi..."

"Very good, Kakashi," the little girl said with a horrible sneer. "Now...play dead." The mangekyou spun and Kakashi fell to the floor, lost in his own nightmare world.

Itachi dispelled the genjutsu, then walked into the room and picked up Naruto. "Well, Naruto-kun. It appears you will finally fulfill your destiny." With that, he opened the window and disappeared into the night.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Installs an electric fence around reader proof room and locks herself inside.)


	27. The Chase

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Opens window of reader proof room)) There will be a sequel and a one-shot side story after this one.

 

Sakura looked at her watch, raised her eyebrows, and walked back inside. "Okay, everyone. It's been a half hour, so I think it's safe to..." she trailed off as she stared in disbelief of the scene before her.

Lee and TenTen shot around the room, throwing ping-pong balls at each other. Sasuke was leaning up against the wall with an amused smirk on his face.

"Lee-kun! Come back here and fight like a man!" TenTen complained as she unleashed another barrage.

"Do you think I'm insane?" Lee said with a laugh.

"Hey!" Sakura called out. Lee and TenTen froze in mid-duck/throw and Hinata looked up from her book.

"Sorry, Sakura-san," Lee said.

Sakura pointed to her watch. "We need to get back to the room."

Lee and TenTen quickly threw the ping pong balls back in the nylon sports bag they had found them in while Hinata put her book back on the shelf.

 

* * *

Jiraiya had a raging headache by the time he managed to dispel the genjutsu he'd been put into. "Damn him."

_((The instant Jiraiya had landed on the roof Itachi had been occupying earlier, the buildings spun around him. "Shit!" He put his hands in the release seal. "Kai!" No effect. "Dammit! I'm going to have to wait for the chakra to disperse. I hope Kakashi can handle the situation until I get there."))_

He jumped off the roof and headed in the direction of the hotel.  _"Please don't let me be too late."_

 

* * *

Sasuke did  _not_  like the dark hallway they were greeted with when the group reached their floor. "Hinata, your Byakugan."

"Nhm. Byakugan!" Hinata saw someone on the floor of the hallway outside their room.  _"Kakashi-sensei?"_  She scanned further. When she saw that Naruto was no longer in his bed, the bottom dropped out of her stomach. She gasped loudly and bolted down the hall.

"Hinata! OI!" Sasuke called after her.

" _Please, let me be wrong!"_  But Hinata knew she was right as soon as she saw that it was indeed Kakashi on the hallway floor.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura yelled as the rest of the group caught up to Hinata.

Hinata looked up at Sakura. "Can you heal him?" she asked, knowing Sakura was much more advanced in medical jutsu than she was.

"I can try," Sakura replied. She knelt down next to Kakashi and began to work.

Hinata took this as her cue and ran into the room. "Naruto-kun!" she called out in desperation.

Tomoyo blinked the sleep out of her eyes and stared in confusion at the panicked girl in the center of the room. "What's wrong?"

Sasuke appeared, silhouetted in the lantern light from the hallway. His hands were clenched in anger. "Itachi took Naruto," he said in a voice which seemed to drop the temperature of the room a few degrees.

Tomoyo leaped out of her bed, ignoring the mild headache this brought. "Where's Kakashi-kun?!"

"Out here," Sasuke answered.

As Hinata, Sasuke and Tomoyo entered the hallway, Sakura stood up, regret etched deeply into her face. "I can't help him. The genjutsu did too much damage."

Upon seeing Kakashi, Tomoyo dove to the floor. "Kakashi-kun!"

Sasuke sighed. "Alright then. The five of us," he said, pointing to all the teens, "will go after Naruto. Tomoyo, will you take Kakashi-sensei back to Konoha?"

"Are you insane? I'm not going anywhere while Naruto is in danger! Not to mention you're a bunch of genin. There's no way in hell you're going to beat Itachi!"

"That's why we need you to bring re-enforcements. Not to mention that you're the only one strong enough to carry Kakashi-sensei."

Tomoyo frowned. "Alright...but don't engage the enemy unless you absolutely have to."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Tomoyo. "Don't talk to me as if you're still a Konoha ninja," he said coldly.

Tomoyo glared at him but kept silent.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura admonished.

Sasuke ignored her. "I'll leave markers along our trail," he said to Tomoyo. "Catch up when you can. And we'll need the Godaime." He turned to his comrades. "Let's go."

Tomoyo let out a sigh of worry as she watched them run down the hallway. "Please God, let them be safe."

 

* * *

As soon as Jiraiya caught sight of the Konoha team he knew he hadn't made it in time. He changed direction and proceeded to catch up with them.

"Sasuke," he said as he fell in step with the team.

Sasuke jumped a little at Jiraiya's sudden appearance but recovered quickly. "Where the hell were you?!"

"This isn't the time for that," Jiraiya answered, barely managing to push down a feeling of guilt. "What kind of head start does Itachi have?"

Sasuke sighed. "At best- about ten minutes. At worst...nearly a half hour."

Jiraiya's jaw clenched in distress at Sasuke's answer. "Lee, you and I will move ahead. The rest of you catch up when you can." Lee nodded and the two sped away.

Sasuke let out a breath of irritation, but he knew there was no time to argue. "Keep moving," he ordered, feeling the need to remind everyone who had taken command of the mission.

It had been almost an hour and Hinata couldn't hear much besides the blood pounding in her head. She had been so desperate to reach Naruto that she had actually pulled ahead of the group by twenty yards.

"Hinata! Stay the hell with the group!" Sasuke yelled.

She clenched her teeth but fell back. For the first time in her life, Hinata truly felt like telling someone to 'shove it'.

 

* * *

The first thing Naruto noticed was the rush of cool air blowing over his body.  _"Man, that feels good."_  He forced his eyes open and looked to see who was carrying him. "ITACHI!?" He immediately began struggling against the ropes that bound him, but it was no use. He had barely had the strength to move.

Itachi merely glanced down in mild interest at hearing Naruto yell his name. "So, you're awake," he said in a deadpan tone.

"Damn right I'm awake! You are SO dead when I get loose."

Itachi simply cocked an eyebrow. "Hm," he snorted in mild amusement. "I injected you with a muscle relaxant. You won't be going anywhere." Naruto gritted his teeth. "Just be patient. We'll be at Orochimaru's place soon."

"Wait a second! Why the hell are you working with Orochimaru?! Don't you hate each other?"

A smirk found its way to Itachi's mouth; one eerily similar to Sasuke's. "Orochimaru is nothing but a pawn. Once he completes his work on you, I will kill him." The smirk widened into a terrible smile. "And you will become Akatsuki's ultimate weapon."

Naruto's eyes widened.  _"Nani?"_

 

* * *

Sasuke broke a large branch on the nearest tree as he passed by it.

Sakura winced. "Do you have to do that much damage?"

Sasuke sighed in irritation. "We don't have time for subtlety."

"S...Sasuke?" mumbled Hinata

"What?" Sasuke replied.

Hinata moved up next to him. "W...we'll make it in time," she said gently.

Sasuke looked at her in surprise.

Hinata's expression showed nothing but unwavering determination. "I  _know_  we will."

After a second Sasuke's expression changed from angry panic to a mirror image of Hinata's. "Nhm!" he said with a strong nod. "Keep moving everyone!" He clenched his fist tightly and stared at it. "We won't fail."

For the rest of the journey...Sasuke broke smaller branches.

Jiraiya swallowed hard. "I've lost Itachi's chakra signature."

"Jiraiya-sama, what if we've lost the trail?" Lee asked with worry.

Jiraiya sighed. "It doesn't matter. I know where he's going," he said as he sliced off the tip of a leaf as a trail marker.

"How?"

"We've just crossed the border of the Sound village."

Lee squinted against the darkness and sure enough, the Village of Sound was barely visible on the horizon. "Do you know where his base is?"

Jiraiya nodded gravely. "I know all too well."

* * *

Tsunade groaned in detest at the paperwork that lay on the desk before her. She lifted her pen and was about to begin signing a document when she heard a commotion outside. She frowned in curiosity. The yelling died down and the door began to open so she took up a battle stance.

The face she was greeted with was one she thought she would never see again. "T-Tomoyo-chan!" Tsunade hopped over her desk. "What...?"

Tomoyo shook her head rapidly. "No time for that! Itachi has Naruto!"

"What?!" In a split second Tsunade had whipped the door open and began barking orders at the startled jounin guards. "Gather all the available anbu and jounin! I want them at the gates in twenty minutes!"

"Hai!" the jounin responded and then disappeared in clouds of smoke.

 

* * *

As the group of ten anbu and six jounin sped toward the Sound village Tsunade's chest was uncomfortably tight. She knew there was a very good chance that they wouldn't make it in time. Suddenly a question entered her mind. She was surprised she hadn't thought to ask it before then. "Tomoyo-chan?"

"Hai?"

"How did you return to Konoha so quickly? It's nearly a days travel to get to Ganshou."

Tomoyo ducked under a small branch. "Minato-kun taught me Hiraishin no Jutsu (A/N- Flying Thunder God technique)."

Tsunade's eyebrows raised in surprise. "I didn't know he'd taught it to anyone."

"He taught me...as a thank you."

Tsunade closed her eyes for a moment. "Well, you certainly deserved it," she said with a smile.

"Thanks," Tomoyo replied.

Tsunade clapped a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. I won't let your sacrifice be in vain."

Tomoyo nodded and they continued on their way.

 

* * *

Naruto could do nothing but glare as Itachi laid him in the center of a sealing circle and bound him with ropes of chakra. "What's he gonna do to me?" he asked, terrified that he would be sliced open again.

"The end result is the only thing I am sure of. Orochimaru has not seen fit to share what his technique will be," Itachi replied. He walked over to one of the pillars in the room, leaned against it, and waited.

After a few moments, Orochimaru and Kabuto appeared. Kabuto was holding several scrolls of various colors. He immediately set about putting them on points of seal Naruto currently lay in the middle of. Once his task was complete he left the room.

Orochimaru walked over to Naruto and squatted down near his head. "So glad you could join us again," he said with a mocking smile.

Naruto gritted his teeth. "Lemme go, damn you!"

Orochimaru chuckled lightly. "Oh don't worry. I won't be cutting you like last time. Kyuubi is dead; which means that my efforts were successful."

"You were... _trying_  to kill Kyuubi?" Naruto asked.

"Of course. I deliberately performed the unsealing jutsus incorrectly. I knew that if he tried to heal you it would be his end. I was waiting for you to be nearly dead before I pushed your skin together." He frowned in irritation. "Then you were rescued."

"I thought you wanted his power. Why would you kill him?"

Orochimaru laughed at this. "Dear boy...I  _have_  his power," he waved a hand over Naruto to indicate him, "right here."

"What the hell makes you think I'll fight for _you_?!" Naruto spat.

"Ku ku ku ku. My my. You certainly are entertaining today. No, Naruto. You won't fight  _ **for**_  me," Orochimaru said.

Confusion spread over Naruto's features. "What?"

Orochimaru leaned in close so that he was a mere inch from Naruto's face. "You will  _ **be**_  me."

Naruto's eyes widened in fear. "NO!"

"After this jutsu is complete you will be my guest for two and a half years. And then...you will become my new body..."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Adds moat around reader proof room))


	28. Seven Shades

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Comes out of reader proof room))Well, this chapter isn't the end, but it does tie a lot of things together. Let's just hope I made my knots tight. Lol.
> 
> Chapter warnings: A rather gruesome death for 2 bad guys and the death of a very minor character.

 

 

 

Jiraiya and Lee waited impatiently a few hundred yards from Orochimaru's hideout. "Where are they?" he mumbled as he scanned the direction they had come from.

"I'm sure they're moving as fast as they can, Jiraiya-sama," Lee replied.

Jiraiya frowned. "Hm."

* * *

Hinata had her Byakugan pushed to the limit as she ran with Sasuke at the front of the team.  _"Please let us be close,"_  she thought.

Sasuke noticed another clipped leaf to his right. "This way," he commanded as he changed course.

After a few moments, Hinata's eyes widened. "There they are!" she said, pointing straight ahead. This time, no amount of yelling from Sasuke would hold her back from using her full speed.

 

* * *

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow as she noticed Sasuke's 'trail' had gotten noticeably less obvious.  _"Hmm. I wonder what calmed him down."_

"Tsunade-sama?" Tomoyo said.

"Hai?"

"How would you feel...if after this is over...I came back to Konoha?"

"That's really up to you. The Namikaze complex is still there, but it would need a lot of work to be livable. May I ask why you want to come back?"

Tomoyo was quiet for a moment. "I was thinking...of adopting Naruto."

This news instantly made Tsunade feel very defensive. "That...would prove difficult."

Tomoyo frowned. "Why?"

"Because he already has a mother," Tsunade said quietly.

Tomoyo's heart sank. "Who?"

"Me."

Tomoyo's eyes widened and then flattened into the narrow slits of an upset frown. "I see..." The two women were quiet for a moment.

"I won't give him up," Tsunade commented suddenly.

"I see..." Tomoyo repeated. She swallowed down the lump in her throat. "Then, after I know Naruto is safe, I'll go back to Ganshou."

"You know...just because you can't adopt him, doesn't mean Naruto wouldn't want you around. Family is very important to him," Tsunade offered.

Tomoyo sighed heavily. "I'll think about it."

"Good," Tsunade said with a smile. She turned to the rest of the team. "We just crossed the Sound village border! Keep an eye out for them!"

"HAI!" yelled the entire team.

 

* * *

Naruto watched in confusion as Kabuto brought in one small cage after another. Each one seemed to have a small animal inside and was placed next to one of the five different colored scrolls. "What are those for?" Naruto asked as Kabuto walked over to Orochimaru and stood next to him.

"These are all summon animals," Kabuto replied with a horrible smile.

"Summon animals?"

"The scrolls are linked to them by a special jutsu I created. This jutsu contains their chakra within the scrolls. I am going to give that chakra...to you."

Naruto's eyes widened. "What'll happen to the summons?!" he demanded.

"They'll die, of course," Orochimaru answered simply.

Naruto gritted his teeth. "You bastard!" Naruto turned his head as he looked at each of the cages. Snake. Dog. Ferret. Slug and... "Gama Kichi?" He looked back at Orochimaru. "Damn you! Let him go!"

Orochimaru smirked. "I don't think so." He cracked his neck. "Kabuto, are you ready?"

Kabuto took a few steps toward Naruto. "Hai, Orochimaru-sama."

 

* * *

Jiraiya, Hinata, Sasuke, TenTen, Lee and Sakura were huddled near the entrance to Orochimaru's base. "Are you sure you can mask all our chakras?" Sakura asked.

Jiraiya grinned. "No problem at all for the famous Jiraiya-sama!"

Sakura's eye twitched.  _"Doesn't he ever get tired of talking about himself?"_

"Why are there only two guards?" Hinata asked.

Jiraiya folded his arms and smiled ruefully. "Orochimaru has always thought he was invincible. He's never used a lot of guards."

"How should we proceed, Jiraiya-sama?" Lee asked with a salute.

Jiraiya put a closed fist to his chin in thought. "Well, first we have to get rid of the 'alarm system'," he said, glancing behind himself to indicate the guards. "Hmmm. Lee."

"Hai!"

"If you remove your weights, how fast are you?"

"He was the first person who's ever been fast enough to hit Sabaku no Gaara!" Sakura said in a way that reminded Sasuke of the way she used to talk about  _his_  exploits.

"Sakura...you...?"

Sakura realized how over exuberant she must have sounded and blushed.

Jiraiya cleared his throat. "Alright then. Lee will take care of the guards."

"Hai!" Lee agreed, saluting again.

"And Lee, nothing fancy. Knock them out and come right back," Jiraiya warned.

Lee nodded and pulled off his weights. "Stand back. I'll need to open the first gate."

Jiraiya raised his eyebrows.  _"A fifteen-year-old child can open the gates?"_  He frowned.  _"Gai has been reckless."_

"Initial gate: Open!" For a moment, Lee's hair looked like it was being ruffled by a mysterious wind - then he shot away so fast that even Sasuke had trouble seeing him.

A green blur flew past the guards, and they both fell to the ground unconscious. Lee rejoined the group. "Mission successful!" he said.

"Good," Jiraiya said with a nod. "Alright everyone, follow me."

The group of Konoha ninja stood and walked quietly into the snake's lair.

 

* * *

Kabuto put his hands on one side of the circle, and half of it began to glow. Orochimaru chose a spot on the circle opposite Kabuto and did the same thing.

As the circle became fully lit, Naruto felt a burning sensation throughout his body. He struggled against his bonds but nothing came of it.  _"Dammit! I can't let this happen!"_  he thought angrily.

Suddenly the summon animals all screamed and lines of chakra in their color streamed from the scrolls into Naruto. "AHHHHHHHHH!" he screamed as pain ripped through his body. His muscles grew tired from the effort of trying to resist the process. The chakra lines disappeared and so did the screams of the animals. He knew they were dead. Chakra swirled all around his body and then all at once seemed to dive into him. He let out one last blood-curdling scream and fell unconscious.

 

* * *

The scream that pierced the blackness of the tunnel she was in made Hinata's blood run cold. "Naruto-kun!" She started to run but Jiraiya held her back.

"We can move faster, but we still need to use caution," he warned.

Hinata nodded in understanding. "Hai. Byakugan."

"Alright, let's go," Jiraiya commanded.

 

* * *

Sweat soaked both Orochimaru and Kabuto as they slowly got to their feet. Itachi walked over to them. "Did it work?" he asked, eyeing Naruto's unconscious form.

"I will know if he wakes up," Orochimaru answered.

Itachi sighed. "I must stay here longer then. My leader wants a report on this."

Orochimaru glared in suspicion. "I thought your business was finished?"

"Oh come now, Orochimaru. You know very well that my leader would want to know the fate of the power you intend to create. We must make sure it will not be a threat to the organization."

"Hmm..." Orochimaru answered, still suspicious, but accepting the explanation for the time being.

 

* * *

Hinata was staring through the walls as Orochimaru and Itachi finished speaking. The look on her face told Jiraiya all he needed to know, but he let her say it anyway.

"We're... too late," she said in a barely audible voice as tears welled up in her eyes.

Sasuke gritted his teeth. "Is he alive?"

Hinata wiped away some of the tears that were running down her face. "I...I think so...but..."

"But what did they do to him?" Sakura finished.

"Jiraiya!" came Orochimaru's voice into the hallway. Everyone froze. "I thought you understood that it's rude to lurk in doorways?"

"No sense hiding now," Jiraiya said with an angry sigh. He stood, and walked into the room. The others followed him.

Orochimaru was sitting in an armchair just a few feet away from Naruto. "Really, Jiraiya; I'm insulted you didn't want to say hi," he said with a very insincere smile.

Jiraiya folded his arms and gave a fake smile in retort. "Tsunade and a rescue team will be here momentarily. You won't win this one." Sasuke began to move forward, but Jiraiya put out an arm. "I'll handle this. You kids take care of Kabuto."

Sasuke frowned. "Hai."

Jiraiya produced a Rasengan and ran towards Orochimaru. He managed to get about three meters before his attack hit an invisible barrier, which sparked and threw him backward. "What the hell?" he asked as his team helped him up.

"You didn't honestly think that I wouldn't have been prepared for a rescue attempt?" Orochimaru said.

For the first time, Jiraiya noticed the two sound nins crouched next to the walls between him and Orochimaru, and cursed himself for not seeing them sooner.

Naruto groaned and Orochimaru smiled. "Well, it would seem he hasn't been killed at least."

"What did you do to...?" Jiraiya trailed off as his gaze fell on the circle under Naruto. His eyes widened. "This is...!"

"What is it, Jiraiya-sama?" TenTen asked. Jiraiya ignored her.

"Orochimaru, you're insane! You know it's impossible!" Jiraiya yelled.

"Only for a simpleton like you," Orochimaru answered coolly.

"What is he trying to do?" Sakura asked.

Jiraiya let out a puff of air through his nose. "He's attempting to give Naruto...niji (A/N-rainbow) chakra."

"WHAT?" Sakura shrieked. The other genin stared at her.

"What the hell is niji chakra?" Sasuke asked, irritated that Jiraiya and Sakura seemed to share a secret he was not aware of.

Jiraiya considered his answer for a moment. "Ever since the discovery of the summon animals, ninjas have tried to find a way to give themselves their power. Each classification of summon animals has its own chakra color—Canine-orange, amphibian-green, invertebrate-violet, reptile-indigo and weasel-yellow. Five colors in total. Humans-blue and the great youkai-red, finish the color set. Ninjas have long theorized that transferring the other six colors to a human body would give them incredible power...but no one's ever figured out how."

Orochimaru smiled. "Until now."

Coughing brought everyone's attention back to Naruto. He gingerly pushed himself to a sitting position, every movement making him wince. His eyes widened a little. "Hinata-chan? Everyone?" Then he noticed Jiraiya and his eyes narrowed. After a moment he closed his eyes and sighed.  _"No...This isn't the time for that."_  He straightened himself a bit. "Why are you guys just standing there?" he asked, breathing heavily.

"There's a barrier, Naruto," Jiraiya answered, nodding his head in the direction of one of the sound nins holding said barrier in place.

Naruto was about to say something else when he doubled over in pain and a clear shockwave blasted outwards from his body. "GHYAAAAAAAAA!"

If the merging of Naruto's and Kyuubi's chakra could have been described as a strong wind, then this could easily be called a small hurricane. Everyone was forced to the ground, struggling to stay where they were. Itachi saw this as his chance. He activated his mangekyou and locked eyes with Orochimaru, forcing the snake-like sannin into a nightmare world where he was killed over and over again in the most horrible ways imaginable.

Kabuto noticed the vacant look on his master's face. "Orochimaru-sama!" he screamed as he slowly crawled towards him. Once he had reached his destination he felt Orochimaru's pulse.  _"It's erratic, but he's alive,"_  he thought in relief.

The pulses from Naruto continued for several minutes. The instant they ended, Itachi leaped toward Orochimaru, kunai in hand. Kabuto jumped up and attempted to block him, but Itachi's hand caught his arm and snapped it backward at the elbow. Kabuto screamed and fell to the floor. Itachi tensed his eyes and the mangekyou began to spin.

Jiraiya had a feeling he knew what was coming. "EVERYONE. get back!" he called out as he herded his team toward the far wall.

Black fire burst into life around Orochimaru and Kabuto. The flames seemed to have a life of their own as they curled around and around their victims; crawling up their arms and legs and licking at their flesh with searing heat. Orochimaru managed to open his eyes, but it was too late. He and Kabuto screamed as their skin simply melted away. Blood oozed everywhere as both men slowly turned into charred skeletons.

Sakura could not hold back her horrified scream. She had heard of Itachi's strength, but she had never imagined he could do something so frightening.  _"No. I can't lose myself to fear."_  She swallowed and noticed that the two men who had been creating the barrier had lost their concentration when their master screamed. "Jiraiya-sama, the barrier's gone!"

It was at that moment that Tsunade and her team arrived. "I thought you were going to wait to engage the enemy," she asked Jiraiya as she stopped next to him.

"Sorry. Things got...complicated," Jiraiya replied.

"So I see." She nodded toward the pile of ashes still feeding the now smaller black flames. "What's that?"

"Our once teammate and his subordinate..."

"What?!" Tsunade clenched her teeth and looked at Itachi.  _"I'd better be careful if he managed to kill Orochimaru."_

Itachi looked at the rather large group that was ready to stand against him, which included two of the sannin.  _"This may be a bit much for me in my current state. I will need a distraction though..."_  he looked around before his eyes settled on Sasuke.  _"He'll do."_  He thought before turning toward his younger brother. "Sasuke."

The instant Sasuke turned his head toward the one who had called his name he knew he had made a serious mistake. He suddenly found himself at his parent's house, walking toward that familiar doorway.  _"Oh please...please not this again. How many times will he make me see this?"_  he thought as he stepped inside the room.

It was horribly quiet. The only thing to occasionally break the silence was the lightning as it shrieked across the blackened sky. "Nii-san! Tou-san, Kaa-san! They're...!" he trailed off when he realized that the person hidden in the shadows in front of him was a bit short to be his brother. "Wh...who are you?"

"You're weak, Sasuke," spoke a voice that seemed very familiar, yet terribly cold.

"Y...you're not Nii-san! Why! Why did you kill them?!" Sasuke cried.

"To test my abilities," said the figure as he stepped out of the shadows.

Sasuke's eyes went wider than humanly possible. "N...Naruto?!"

Naruto was dressed in Itachi's anbu uniform. A cruel smile played across his lips, and the mangekyou sharingan, which contrasted sharply with the cerulean blue, stared out from his eyes. "You honestly think making a new brother is going to make things better? The only thing that will bring you strength is hate." He took a step toward Sasuke. "Now..." he said, the smile transforming into a sick grin. "Hate me!"

Sasuke's hands flew up and clutched the sides of his head as he dropped to the floor. "NOOOOOOOOO!"

Sakura was on her knees next to Sasuke, attempting to heal his mind from Itachi's attack.  _"Damn that bastard! What did he make him see?"_

Itachi looked at Naruto and clenched his jaw in irritation. He hadn't expected so much opposition and now he would have to delay his capture of him. "You've only postponed the inevitable." Dog, Ox, Ram, Dragon.

" _Those seals!"_  Tsunade thought. "RUN!" she screamed at everyone. As she dove for safety she grabbed Naruto, rolling out of the way just in time to avoid being incinerated. By the time she looked up, Itachi was gone. She sighed and got to her feet, slinging Naruto over her back as she did so.

"Should I follow him?" Jiraiya asked Tsunade.

"No. Naruto is safe. That's all that matters right now," Tsunade answered with a relieved smile.

"Tsunade-sama?" Sakura said. Tsunade walked over to her.

"Yes?" she asked.

"I...need help. I still can't do this one right," Sakura admitted with a frown.

Tsunade smiled. "It's okay. You'll get it." She knelt down and placed her hand over Sasuke's forehead. In a matter of seconds, his eyelids were fluttering.

"Arigato, Tsunade-sama," Sakura said.

Tsunade only smiled in reply and patted the girl's shoulder. "Alright...let's get out of here."

"Wait a moment," Jiraiya said before heading for one of the summon cages. He gently lifted Gama Kichi's body and cradled him in one arm, sighing sadly as he closed the small frog's eyes. "We should take them with us...Give them back to their families."

Everyone nodded in agreement and gathered all the cages. "Now, we can go," Jiraiya said.

"Hai," Tsunade replied. She shifted Naruto to a more comfortable holding position and the team headed for home.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Sits in a lawn chair near RPR)) Don't think I need it for this chap, but I'm stayin' near the door just in case. Lol.


	29. Rain

 

 

Gamabunta stared forlornly at the still form of the much smaller frog cradled in his enormous webbed hand. He squeezed his eyes shut and a single tear rolled down his face. "Gamakichi..." he said softly.

"I'm so sorry, Gamabunta...if I had gotten there in time..."

"It's...not your fault, Jiraiya," Gamabunta replied. He sighed heavily. "I just don't know how to tell my mate. I'm...going to take him home now."

"Of course."

Gamabunta sighed again and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. As Jiraiya was returning to the city, he saw Tsunade walking up the path. "Ohayo, Tsunade."

"Ohayo...Jiraiya." Silence. "How did he take it?" she asked with a wince.

"About as well as you would expect. I suspect I won't be able to summon him for quite some time." Jiraiya watched a bird as it flew over his head. "How did it go with Katsuyu (A/N-Tsunade's summon)?"

"Not as bad. It wasn't her child, but she was still upset," Tsunade replied.

"Nhm." Silence. "Well...I'll be seeing you," Jiraiya said as he turned around to go.

"Jiraiya, wait," Tsunade said as she placed a hand on his arm. Jiraiya turned back around to face her.

"Hm?"

"Naruto should be awake soon. I want you to stay and talk to him," Tsunade said.

Jiraiya shook his head. "It won't do any good, Tsunade. He hates me," he said sadly.

"I don't think he does. He was taking the shock of the moment out on you. I think if you talk to him again you might find he's calmed down."

Jiraiya sighed. "Alright." Silence. "But before I do that, I need to tell you the whole truth..."

 

* * *

Naruto had spent the past few nights in the hospital. Monitors beeped in rhythm with his heart and circular pads on his forehead connected him by wires to a machine that watched the electrical activity in his brain. He was getting very tired of listening to the incessant beeping. "Beep beep...beep beep...beep beep," he repeated in a bored voice as he stretched out on the floor in front of Kyuubi's empty cage.

He made a long, irritated sigh as he rolled over and stared at the cage. "I wish he was here to teach me how to heal." Pause. "Wait a minute...maybe I can teach myself." He sat up and leaned against the wall. "Hmmm. Maybe if I just imagine myself getting better, then I will." He pictured his body in his mind. "Get better, get better, get better..."

After a minute he realized his plan wasn't working and stopped. "I guess I'll have to ask Baa-chan how to heal myself when I wake up." With that, he flopped back down to the floor and resumed echoing the heart monitors.

 

* * *

She watered the flowers on the nightstand next to Naruto's bed, put the watering can on the floor, and sat back down on the chair she'd occupied for the last few hours. She had wanted to stay by his side every second until he woke up, but of course, her father would have none of it and restricted her to normal visiting hours. She became more alert when she suddenly heard her name called.

"H...Hinata-chan?"

A wide, open-mouthed smile lit up her face. "Naruto-kun!" she cried happily. She hugged him and planted a kiss on his lips, then sat up quickly with a blush. "S...sorry, Naruto-kun."

Naruto smiled. "Don't worry about it—definitely not the worst way to wake up."

Hinata's blush intensified at the comment. "I'll...be right back. I have to tell the nurse you're awake," she said before getting up and leaving the room.

Naruto smiled and sighed happily.  _"Not a bad way to wake up at all."_  he thought as he folded his arms under the back of his head.

 

* * *

Sweat beaded on Lee's forehead as he pounded away at the multi-armed practice poles in front of him. "One thousand four, one thousand five, one thousand six..."

"Leee-Kuuun!"

Lee stopped his practicing and turned in the direction of the voice to see Sakura running toward him from the other side of the field.

"Sakura-san!" he said with a wave.

"Lee-kun, Naruto's awake!" Sakura said once she came to a stop.

Lee grinned. "Yosh! I knew he'd be fine," he said as he clenched a fist in front of him for emphasis.

Sakura smiled, but then became quiet. "Lee-kun?"

Lee saw the serious look on Sakura's face and became concerned. "Hai?"

"It's nothing bad. I just...need to talk to you for a minute," Sakura said as she fidgeted with her hands.

"Oh. Okay...Do you want to sit down?"

Sakura shook her head. "No, standing's...fine." Silence. "Lee-kun...While Sasuke and I were out on the terrace at the hotel..." she began.

Lee forced a smile. "I'm happy for you. I didn't think he'd ever change his mind," he said, trying to keep his shattered heart from showing.

Sakura immediately understood what Lee was thinking. "We didn't kiss, Lee-kun."

Lee looked confused. "Then what...?"

Sakura put her fingers over his mouth in order to silence him. "I told Sasuke-kun...that I don't love him anymore..."

A flutter of hope entered Lee's chest. "Y...you don't?" He swallowed down his nerves.

Sakura shook her head once again. "No...I like...someone else..." she said as she looked at him.

"S-s-s someone else?" Lee asked, trying desperately to remain calm.

Sakura, having suddenly lost her ability to speak, looked down at her feet.  _"Should I just come out and say it? How should I say it? Aaaaaaugh! Oh the hell with it!"_  With that thought, she jumped up, wrapped her arms around Lee's neck, and kissed him.

Rock Lee could not move a single muscle; hell, he could barely breathe. And he felt stupid too. The girl he loved more than anything was kissing him and all he could do was stand there like a statue.

After a moment, Sakura realized Lee was not kissing her back and stopped. As she backed down off of her tiptoes she looked at Lee in confusion. "Lee-kun?" No answer. "Lee-kun...say something," she said with a worried frown.

Suddenly, Lee blinked rapidly, as though coming out of a trance. It took him less than two seconds to quickly take Sakura's face in his hands and covered her lips with his own.

Sakura's eyes widened in surprise, but it didn't take her long to settle into the kiss. Just a few months ago she would never have thought of kissing Lee, but now it seemed like the most natural thing in the world.

After a few moments, they parted. Sakura looked at Lee's eyes. Somehow, they didn't seem as strange as they used to. Where once there were these odd, round portals, there was now warmth...and love. Was this really the same boy whose manner and eyes made her very skin crawl when they first met? It seemed so very long ago. She noticed he had tears slowly finding their way down his face. "Lee-kun?"

Lee made no move to wipe away his tears. He put his hands to her face again, rested his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. "I'm scared."

Sakura's face crinkled in concern. "Scared?"

"I'm scared to move or breathe. I'm afraid all of this will vanish and I'll wake up," Lee answered in a choked voice.

Sakura smiled. "Lee-kun..." She pulled him into a warm embrace. "I'm not going anywhere."

 

* * *

Naruto sighed for the millionth time as Tsunade checked him over. "I'm fine, Baa-chan."

Tsunade sighed and stood straight. "I suppose so. Just take it easy for the next few days."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah."

Silence.

"Naruto?" Tsunade said with unease in her voice.

Naruto looked up. "Hm?"

"Someone would like to visit you."

Tsunade's tone sounded odd to Naruto. "So? Send them in."

"Alright, but please do me a favor and don't make a scene." She turned and went to the door. Opening it a crack, she spoke, "You can come in now."

"A scene? Why would I...?" Naruto began before he saw Jiraiya step through the door. His eyes narrowed into angry slits. He jumped up and was caught by Tsunade just before he managed to escape through the window. "LET ME GO!" he roared.

Tsunade put Naruto back on his bed and held him down. "You will  _at least_  listen to what he has to say. If, after he's finished, you still want nothing to do with him, that's your business." She leaned closer to him and lowered her voice. "But you would  _really_  be the idiot so many people think you are if you let the friendship between you two go without a chance," she said sternly.

Naruto stopped struggling. "Fine," he snapped, before folding his arms.

Tsunade let Naruto go and turned to face Jiraiya. "Good luck." She placed a hand on his shoulder. "If you need me, I'll be in the hall," she said with a comforting smile.

Jiraiya nodded in thanks and sighed as Tsunade closed the door behind her.

Silence.

More silence.

"Naruto...I..."

"Spit it out, would you? I don't have all day!" Naruto said irritably.

"I need you to know the whole truth." Jiraiya sat in a nearby chair. "If you still hate me after I'm done talking, then I won't bother you anymore."

Naruto's expression softened a bit. "Fine."

"I was on your mother's squad for only a few months, when she told me that she was pregnant with you." Jiraiya allowed himself a small smile. "I was very happy. Minato was like a son to me, so I felt like I would soon have a grandson." His smile faded. "When she was about five months along I learned, through my network, that someone was planning to release the Kyuubi in order to harness his chakra. That person...was Orochimaru."

Naruto, now interested in the story, sat up straighter.

"I knew he had gone insane, but I had no idea he would try something so stupid." Jiraiya sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "I told Minato, and he immediately began working on a new sealing jutsu. A few months later Orochimaru attempted his plan, but something went wrong, and Kyuubi was released from the youkai realm into our own. After the attack, Sandaime-sama asked me if I wanted to take you in. I wanted to...I really did...but I felt I needed to avenge Minato. I didn't think it would take so long..."

Silence.

"But the weeks turned into months and the months turned into years. By the time I realized that taking care of you was more important, you were four years old. I knew you had grown up with Sandaime, and I thought you were happy. I felt like I had no place in your life anymore, so I stayed away. If...if I had known about the way everyone treated you...I...I never would've..." Jiraiya finished as he wiped away the tears that were threatening to fall. "I know I don't have the right to ask...but is it possible for you to forgive me?"

Naruto simply stared at the man in front of him. This man was not the normally proud Jiraiya. This was a man who cared about him and was begging for forgiveness. He couldn't just leave it at that. "Yeah..."

Jiraiya looked up in surprise.

"I can forgive you. It'll just...take a little while," Naruto said with a somber expression.

Jiraiya closed his eyes for a moment. "That's a lot more than I expected...Thank you." He stood to leave. As his hand touched the door handle, he spoke again, "I'm glad you're alright."

Naruto sighed. "Thanks."

Jiraiya nodded and left the room. He saw Tsunade standing there with a satisfied smile. "Thank you, Tsunade. You stopped me from making another mistake."

"Don't worry about it. Come on. Let's go get something to eat," Tsunade answered with a grin.

Jiraiya smiled, and the two sannin left the hospital.

 

* * *

Tsunade's face began to slip down the hand it was resting on. She suddenly blinked and shook away her exhaustion. She was surrounded by the stacks of books on her bed. She'd spent the last six hours searching for anything she could find on niji chakra. What she had found were merely passing references shrugging it off as an impossible legend.

She noticed the room around her getting brighter which meant the day was coming. She frowned at her rather skimpy list of notes and sighed.  _"I guess I'll have to finish this later."_  She yawned, moved the books to the floor, turned out the light, and laid down in an attempt to get the little sleep she could before work.

 

* * *

Hinata walked along the road to the hospital with a small bouquet of daffodils in her hands. She spotted Lee and Sakura and walked over to greet them.

Sakura saw Hinata approaching and smiled. "Hey, Hinata."

"Hello, Sakura-chan," Hinata replied.

Sakura noticed the flowers Hinata was carrying. "Are you going to see Naruto?"

Hinata smiled, looked at the ground and blushed a bit. "H...hai."

Sakura giggled softly. "You're his girlfriend now. You don't have to get embarrassed anymore."

Hinata looked up. "You're right," she said with a smile. "Would you like to come with me?"

"That sounds great. How bout you, Lee-kun?" Sakura asked.

"You bet!" Lee answered. He took Sakura's hand. "Let's go."

Hinata looked at Lee and Sakura's intertwined fingers and her eyes widened a bit. "A..ano? I hope you don't mind me saying this...but I'm glad you've finally accepted Lee-kun," she said with an approving smile.

Sakura grinned from ear to ear. "Me too," she said as she looked up at Lee and gave his hand a short squeeze.

 

* * *

Naruto looked up as Sakura, Lee and Hinata entered his room. "Hey, guys!"

"Hi, Naruto," Sakura replied. "You're looking a lot better," she said with a smile.

"I feel a lot better," Naruto said.

"Ohayo, Naruto-kun," Hinata said.

Naruto flashed her a foxy grin. "Hey, Hinata-chan." His gaze drifted to the flowers. "Are those for me?"

"Hai," Hinata replied with a blush. She walked over to the bed and handed Naruto her gift. "I picked them out because the tops are yellow like...your hair."

Naruto's grin widened and he blushed. "Thanks."

Sakura leaned up to whisper in Lee's ear. "Aren't they just adorable?"

Lee grinned. "Yeah," he whispered back then, using the opportunity their close proximity afforded him, gave her a quick kiss.

"Neh, Naruto?" Sakura said.

"Hai?" Naruto replied as he put his flowers in the vase on the nightstand.

"With everything that's happened since your party, I never got around to having mine." Sakura pulled a small, pink envelope from her equipment pouch. "It's on the fifteenth." She walked over and held out the invitation to Naruto. "You're invited," she said with a smile.

The instant Naruto's fingers touched the invitation, a memory awakened that made him freeze in place. The stunned look on his face must have been quite severe because Sakura frowned in concern. "Naruto?" she asked as she placed the envelope on his bed.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

Naruto blinked rapidly and shook his head. "Eh...um...nothing." He said softly. "Just a...a headache," he said rather unconvincingly. "Could...could you guys leave me alone for a bit? I'm...kinda tired."

"Okay," Lee said, earning an unhappy look from Sakura.

"Lee..." she began.

"Get some rest," Lee interrupted, silencing Sakura with a look.

Once Lee and Sakura were in the hallway, Sakura turned to him. "Why did you do that? Something obviously upset him!"

"Which is why we needed to go. I don't know what it was, but something about his expression told me that we would only make him uncomfortable. Hinata is probably the only one who could get through to him right now."

Sakura sighed and dropped her arms to her sides in defeat. "Alright," she said. "Let's go then." and the two walked off down the hallway.

Back in the room Hinata was at a loss as to what she should say, but Naruto broke the silence for her.

"Hinata-chan, I know you want to help, but I'd really like to be alone right now," Naruto said gently. Hinata's expression became sad and she looked down. "I'll tell you later...I promise. I just want some time to myself," he added with a comforting smile.

Hinata sighed. "Alright." She gave him a kiss. "I'll see you after I get my mission assignment." With that, she turned around and left the room.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Naruto gingerly picked up the invitation off the bed. He stared at it with a tightness in his stomach. "I completely forgot about that."

 

* * *

Sakura had left Lee at his place and started walking home. On her way, she went past the academy and suddenly had an idea.  _"I wonder,"_  she thought and jogged toward the building.

 

* * *

Iruka was correcting some tests when he heard someone knocking.

 

"Iruka-sensei?" Sakura said as she opened the door and walked in.

Iruka smiled. "Sakura, What's up?"

"I wanted to ask you a question...about Naruto," Sakura answered carefully.

Iruka raised his eyebrows. "Sounds serious."

"It's not...well...actually I'm not sure what it is."

"Hmm. Let's sit outside," Iruka said as he stood up.

 

* * *

Sakura nodded and they left the room.

"So what is it?" Iruka asked as Sakura seated herself on Naruto's swing.

"Well, a little while ago, I was visiting Naruto with Lee-kun and Hinata. I wanted to invite him to my birthday party."

"Wasn't your birthday in March?"

"Hai...but I never had time to get around to a party."

"I see."

"So anyway...I handed him his invitation and...he got this strange look on his face. He asked us to leave...He wouldn't say what was wrong," Sakura finished with a frown.

Iruka's face wore an expression of understanding. "I think I know what it was, but you may not want to hear it."

Sakura was confused. "Why?"

"It has to do with you," Iruka replied gently.

Sakura was a bit startled. "Me?"

Iruka sighed. "It happened when Naruto was nine years old. He came to me and said he had some great news. I was glad to see him so happy. He wore a fake smile so often back then," Iruka's eyes clouded over with sadness at the memory. "I asked him what happened and he told me that he'd just been invited to a birthday party."

"A birthday party?"

"Your...birthday party."

"Mine? But, I never..." Sakura's eyes became wide as a long forgotten memory seeped its way into her mind.

_((Sakura looked at Uzumaki Naruto, and then at her last invitation. She'd never seen him hanging around with anyone, so she wondered if she should invite him. Finally, she decided it was okay and walked over. "Naruto?"_

_Naruto, who was sitting on his swing, looked up, surprised that someone was talking to him. "Hai?" he replied with suspicion._

" _Do you wanna come to my birthday party?"_

_Naruto's face lit up. "That'd be great!"_

_Sakura smiled and handed him the invitation. "Okay. It's Saturday at five o' clock."_

" _Thanks!" Naruto said as he stuffed the invitation in his pants pocket._

" _Do you know the way to my house?"_

" _No," Naruto replied, nervously scratching the back of his neck._

" _You live with Sandaime-sama, right?"_

" _Sort of. I have an apartment right next to the Hokage tower."_

" _ **He's lives by himself?"**  Sakura thought in shock. "Okay, I'll come get you then. Wait for me outside your apartment at four thirty."_

" _Okay," Naruto replied._

" _See you later," Sakura said as she ran off. "Don't forget!" She called back over her shoulder._

" _Hai!" Naruto called back._

" _Kaasan?" Sakura said._

" _Yes, sweetheart?" Mrs. Haruno answered_

" _I invited one more person to my party. Is that okay?" Sakura asked hopefully._

_Mrs. Haruno smiled. "Sure. Who is it?"_

" _Uzumaki Naruto," Sakura replied._

_Mrs. Haruno stopped moving. "I'm sorry, Sakura. He can't come," she said in a low voice._

" _But why?" Sakura asked with a sad frown._

" _He's..." She paused. **"What should I tell her? He's dangerous? He could kill her? No...better go with something else,"**  she thought. "He's under the care of Sandaime-sama, and you didn't ask his permission."_

" _Oh. Well, we can just call him then," Sakura said._

" _I...don't know his number," Mrs. Haruno replied, praying her daughter would drop it. No such luck._

" _We can look it up," Sakura said as she walked over to the phonebook and began to turn the pages. Suddenly, the book was shut and her mother's hand firmly held the cover in place._

" _Sakura, drop it!" Mrs. Haruno said crossly._

" _Why?" Sakura asked, frustration building up inside of her._

" _Do as I say."_

_Sakura bowed her head. "Hai...Kaasan."))_

"Poor Naruto. I completely forgot about it." Sakura began to stand up. "Well, at least now I can apologize to him."

"Wait...you don't know everything," Iruka informed her. Sakura sat back down. "On the day of the party, Naruto took all of the savings from the allowance Sandaime-sama gave him and asked me to take him shopping. He wanted to buy you a present. I told him he didn't have to spend so much, but he wouldn't hear of it."

"Once we had the gift I took him home. He told me he didn't need me to stay with him, so I left. He stood in front of his building and waited for you."

"He waited..." Sakura exclaimed with a heavy heart.

"Around six o' clock it began raining. At nine o' clock I figured the party was over and went to ask him if he'd had fun. I got to the front of his building...and that's where I found him."

Sakura let out a gasp and her hand flew to her mouth.

_((Naruto was sitting on the ground, holding Sakura's present. He was soaked to the bone and shivering with cold. Iruka could hardly believe his eyes. "He...He's been waiting out here all this time?" He bent down and held his umbrella over the small child in front of him. "Naruto?" No answer. "Naruto, we have to go inside."_

" _Sh-sh-sh-she s-s-s-aid sh-sh-sh-she's c-c-c-c-coming," Naruto's small voice shivered in determination._

_Pain entered Iruka's heart. "Naruto..." he said before pulling him into a hug._

_Naruto's resolve melted away and he began to cry.))_

Sakura's eyes overflowed with tears.

"I brought him inside and had him change his clothes. Then I sent him to bed and kept him company till he fell asleep." Iruka wiped his eyes as he finished speaking.

Sakura felt as though her heart would break. That she had caused Naruto that much pain was too much for her to bear. She put her face in her hands and sobbed loudly.

Iruka felt a stab of pity as he watched her. "Sakura..."

"Please...just go..." Sakura managed to choke out.

Iruka sighed. "Alright." He stood up. "But, if it means anything to you, I know your parents probably stopped you from going to him. It wasn't your fault." When he didn't receive an answer, Iruka walked away.

Sakura continued to cry. After a while, she stood up and just stared at the swing. "Someday, I'll make up for this, Naruto." She turned away from the swing, left the schoolyard and walked home.  _"I promise."_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I pulled that plot idea right out of my childhood. Well, minus the rain. I figured I might as well get some use out of my less pleasant memories. Lol.


	30. Ikasugan

 

Sasuke breathed heavily as he held his pounding head in his hand. "Damn nightmare," he complained under his breath. He pushed the covers off of himself, looked out the window, and shuddered. Rain pummeled the glass and lightning arced across the night sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. Just at that moment, a dark shape appeared at the window. His eyes widened, and his breath caught in his throat. Then the figure knocked.

"Sasuke! Oi!"

Sasuke visibly relaxed, turned on a lamp, and opened the window. Naruto hopped through the window and Sasuke quickly closed it. "Dammit, Naruto! I was sleeping!" he growled.

Naruto grinned nervously. "I know. Gomen. But I couldn't sleep, and I'm out of ramen," he said sheepishly.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and sighed loudly at the ceiling. He pointed toward the kitchen. "Far right cabinet, top shelf, behind the rice."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks!" he said before heading for the kitchen. He returned a few minutes later with five cups ramen in his arms. "Thanks again, Sasuke! You're a pal!" he said as he started to open the window.

Sasuke looked at his friend's soaking wet clothes and hair. "Wait...Go eat it in the kitchen. You can wait out the storm here."

Naruto grinned and shut the window. "Thanks!"

"Yeah, yeah. Just don't wake me up when you leave. And get a towel. You're dripping water everywhere," Sasuke instructed before getting back into bed and shutting off the lamp.

 

* * *

Naruto sat down with his latest cup of ramen and began to eat. As he finished up the last one, he heard a yell from Sasuke's room. He jumped up and ran to his brother. He saw him tossing his head from side to side, his hair damp with sweat.  _"A nightmare?"_  he concluded. "Sasuke? Sasuke, wake up!" he said as he gently shook him.

Suddenly Sasuke's eyes snapped open. "HOW COULD YOU?" he roared as he grabbed Naruto by the throat and threw him to the floor. He then jumped on top of him and pulled back his fist in preparation for a punch.

"SASUKE!" Naruto yelled in an attempt to snap him out of it.

Sasuke froze mid-punch, his eyes wide with shock. "N...Naruto?"

"Who'd ya think it was, Teme?!" Naruto replied as he rubbed his sore larynx.

Sasuke sat down on the floor. "G...Gomen."

"That must've been one hell of a nightmare," Naruto said hoarsely. "What was it about?"

Sasuke froze for a second. There was no way in hell he was going to tell Naruto that he had replaced Itachi in his nightmare. "Um, just, Itachi," he said, hoping Naruto would buy it.

"Oh..." Naruto yawned. "Well I hope ya don't mind, but I don't think I'll be waking you up from your nightmares anymore," he said with a bemused smile.

Sasuke faked his usual smirk. "Hmf."

Naruto noticed it seemed quieter than it had been when he'd first arrived and looked out the window. "Well," He sneezed, "looks like the storm's done." Another sneeze.

"You really are an idiot. You caught a cold from being out in the rain," Sasuke said with a frown.

Naruto wiped his nose and made a reassuring hand wave. "Nah. Somebody must be talkin' about me. I've never been sick a day in my life."

"Never?"

Naruto smiled. "Nope."

"Okay then. See you later," Sasuke yawned as he crawled back into bed.

Naruto opened the window. "Ja!" he said and disappeared into the night.

 

* * *

Naruto sat up and then fell straight back down to the bed. His head felt like it weighed twenty pounds. "What the hell is the matter with me?" he groaned. He rolled out of bed, got dressed, and headed downstairs to breakfast.

 

* * *

Tsunade heard Naruto's footsteps and looked up. "Ohayo..." she noticed her son looked a little pale, "...Naruto?"

"Ohayo, Kaa-san," Naruto mumbled as he slumped into his seat.

Tsunade was instantly concerned. She got up and put a hand on Naruto's forehead. It was extremely hot. "You're burning up!"

"I'm not sick," Naruto replied as he sniffed.

"Yeah, right," Tsunade said. "You're not training today."

Naruto glared at her. "I told you, I'm fine!" he said. Just to prove his point, he stood and began performing some taijutsu moves. "Look!" At the end of his demonstration, he passed out and fell to the floor.

"Naruto!" Tsunade said loudly as she dropped to the floor by her son. She put two fingers to his neck and breathed a sigh of relief. She noticed Nabiki walking by. "Nabiki."

"Hai?" Nabiki replied as she stopped mid-step. When she saw Naruto on the floor her eyes widened. "Naruto-kun!"

Tsunade held up a hand to stave off Nabiki's oncoming panic attack. "He's just sick. Please inform Sakura and Sasuke that he won't be practicing with them today," Tsunade instructed as she scooped up Naruto into her arms.

Nabiki still looked concerned but bowed anyway. "Hai, Tsunade-sama," she said before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

 

* * *

Naruto groaned and opened his eyes. As his vision became clear he saw Tsunade sitting in a chair in front of him. "Ohayo," was the only thing he could think of to say.

Tsunade smiled. "You gave me a little scare there, kiddo," she said just before ruffling his hair slightly.

"I don't get it," Naruto said after a moment, "Why the hell am I sick? I never get sick."

Tsunade frowned in thought. "I think this is another thing you'll have to get used to now that Kyuubi is gone."

Naruto growled in disgust. "Dammit."

"Here," Tsunade said as she laid a green chakra covered hand on Naruto's chest. After a moment she sat up straight again. "Better?"

Naruto took a deep breath; testing his lungs. "Yeah, a little," he said as he began to sit up.

"Ooooo no you don't," Tsunade said with a smile as she pushed him back down. "You still need to rest for the day."

Naruto frowned. "But you just healed me!" he protested.

"I helped your immune system and cleared out the mucus, but it's not an instant cure," Tsunade replied.

Naruto growled. "Fine." A sudden thought struck him. "Neh, will you teach me how to heal myself later?"

Tsunade seemed to consider this for a moment. "Okay, but after we work on your chakra control."

"We did that already!"

"Yes, but your chakra has changed again, therefore you need more training," Tsunade said firmly.

Naruto sighed.

"Get some rest. We'll start tomorrow morning," Tsunade said as she kissed her son's forehead.

"Hai haiiii," Naruto grumbled. After Tsunade left the room he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

 

* * *

Sakura dodged Tsunade's punch only to be side kicked a split second later. She stumbled backward and held her side, breathing hard.  _"Dammit."_

Tsunade shook her head. "You shouldn't still be falling for that trick after a month, Sakura."

Sakura sat down on the grass. "In my defense, you're not exactly an easy opponent."

"True, but you should have at least been able to  _attempt_  a block."

Sakura gritted her teeth. "Hai, Tsunade-sama."

"Hinata, you're up," Tsunade said.

Hinata nodded. As she slid into her basic stance, she noticed a figure running towards them. "Naruto-kun!" she said with a wave.

Tsunade smiled. "It's good to see you with so much confidence now."

Hinata returned the smile. "Thank you, Sensei," she said with a short bow.

Naruto came to a stop next to Hinata. "Ohayo, everyone."

Tsunade smiled. "You're looking much better."

Sakura turned a confused gaze toward Tsunade. "Better? From what?"

"I had a cold yesterday," Naruto replied.

" _Had_? How do you get over a cold in one day?" Sakura asked.

"Baa-chan," Naruto answered with a grin.

Sakura frowned. "Naruto! She's your mother now. Show some respect," she chastised.

Tsunade shook her head and put up her hand to halt Sakura's rant. "You're fighting an uphill battle in a wheelchair, Sakura."

Sakura gave Tsunade a look of stunned confusion. Naruto simply grinned and Hinata giggled.

"At any rate. Since Naruto is here, your training session is over," she said to Hinata and Sakura.

"Can we stay and watch?" Hinata asked.

Tsunade shook her head. "I'm afraid that's not possible. Last time he trained with new chakra Shizune wound up in my personal medical ward."

Hinata's eyes widened and she looked at Naruto. He swallowed and averted his eyes to stare at the ground.

"We'll let you get started then," Sakura said, mild unease in her voice.

Naruto noticed the concerned look on Hinata's face. "It'll be okay," he said as he gave her a hug.

Hinata pulled back from the hug a bit. "Are you sure?"

"Hai," Naruto replied. He gave her a quick kiss. "I'll be fine."

Hinata blushed and nodded. "Okay. D-don't forget, we're getting ramen at six," she said before turning and walking away.

"Hai." After Hinata had disappeared from sight Naruto turned back to Tsunade, who wore a sappy smile. "What're you smiling at?"

Tsunade's smile widened. "You two are just so cute."

Naruto promptly folded his arms and rolled his eyes. "Psht. Let's just get started."

Tsunade chuckled warmly and picked up a clipboard from the rock it had been sitting on. "Alright." She walked a little further towards the middle of the field and stopped. "Now," she said once Naruto caught up to her, "the first thing I want to discuss is," she flipped a page, "your eyes," she said seriously.

"My eyes?"

"Hai. According to Kakashi, while you were fighting Namikaze Noriko..."

Naruto flinched.

"...your eyes changed to become purple with white centers."

"Hai," Naruto replied, suddenly feeling uneasy.

Tsunade frowned. "I assume you know what happened to Noriko?" she asked gently.

Naruto's expression became somber. "Yeah."

"It wasn't your fault. You know that, right?"

"Doesn't make me feel any better about it."

Tsunade decided to try a slight subject change. "Have you been to visit Tomoyo at the hotel yet?"

Naruto turned his gaze to the sky. "No..." He sighed. "I don't know what I'd say to her. 'Hi. I'm your long lost cousin. Too bad about that whole seppuku thing. Wanna go get some ramen?'," he said, finishing his sentence with an eye-roll.

Silence.

Tsunade grimaced a little. "How about just 'Hi.' to start?"

Naruto let out a long sigh and looked at his mother. "Can we talk about this later?"

Tsunade nodded. "Sure." She looked at the report again. "So, tell me what happened."

Naruto stared at her blankly for a moment. "Ummm...they...changed...color," he said, unsure about quite what information she wanted.

Tsunade looked at the sky for help. "I meant, how did it manifest?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "I'm not really sure. I was yelling at Noriko and they just...changed."

"Hmm. Sounds like it may be like when the Kyuubi's features emerged. Heightened emotions set it off."

"Makes sense to me," Naruto answered with a shrug.

"Did your vision change in any way?"

"Not right away, but after a few minutes I saw these purple...dots floating in the air."

"Purple dots?" Tsunade asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yeah. They were everywhere. I tried to touch them, but I couldn't, so I molded some chakra to my hands. It worked and I managed to grab a bunch of them," Naruto said with a growing smile.

"And?"

"I squished them into a ball," Naruto replied, curling his hand into a fist to illustrate.

"A ball?"

"Yeah. And then I threw the ball and...well...it...kind of exploded," Naruto said sheepishly.

Tsunade's eyebrows went up. She was silent for a moment before frowning in frustration. "I wish you could activate your eyes so you could show me."

"I could try. I mean, Sasuke can activate the sharingan whenever he wants."

Tsunade shrugged. "It's worth a shot."

Naruto nodded and scrunched up his face in concentration. Not surprisingly, nothing happened.

"Hmmm. Try focusing chakra to your eyes. But just a little. We don't need any shockwaves right now," Tsunade instructed.

"Hai." Naruto put his hands into the molding seal. After a minute he felt a bit of discomfort and his new doujutsu slid into place. He looked up at Tsunade. "Did it work?"

The Fifth Hokage didn't say anything. Instead, she simply put her hand over her mouth and stared.

Naruto was growing impatient. "Well?"

Tsunade shook her head to bring herself back into focus. "Sorry. Yes, it worked. Do you see the dots?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, then just...do what you did before," Tsunade said with a slight 'after you' wave.

Naruto focused chakra to his hands and began grabbing the dots.

Tsunade was surprised after a moment as the mass in Naruto's hand became large enough for the naked eye to see.

Once the mass filled his entire hand he formed the ball and held it up for Tsunade to study.

"Incredible," she exclaimed. Suddenly her eyes widened. There was only one thing in the air that could explode just from being made into a ball and then thrown...but it was only supposed to be a theory. She took a deep breath. "Throw it."

Naruto turned around and whipped the ball at a rock that was roughly twelve feet in front of him. The rock shattered from the explosion, sending shards flying everywhere. Both he and Tsunade put up their arms to shield their faces.

When the danger was past Tsunade stared at the shallow crater in the ground where the rock used to be. "I thought so."

"What is it?"

"Sugikon..." Tsunade turned to look at her son. "You've just thrown a bomb made of chakra residue."

 


	31. Father

 

Naruto's face was twisted in a frown of confusion. "Chakra leaves a residue? Since when?"

Tsunade folded her arms. "Until now it was just a theory I'd heard of. When I was living away from Konoha I became friends with a chakra specialist. She believed that chakra leaves a sort of by-product, or residue, hanging in the air after it's used. She called it Sugikon (A/N- After soul)." She paused. "It looks like she was right."

Naruto deactivated his doujutsu. "So it's a bomb of chakra residue?"

"Pretty much."

"Why didn't you tell me my family had a doujutsu?"

"Because they didn't."

"But..."

"It's most likely due to Kyuubi's chakra merging with yours. Youma chakra is very different from that of humans and summons. You might even develop other physical...changes," Tsunade said carefully.

"I won't...turn into a youma...will I?" Naruto said with a fearful expression.

Tsunade smiled. "No, your human chakra would keep that from happening."

Naruto visibly relaxed. "What else will change?"

Tsunade grimaced slightly. "I don't really know. Hopefully, anything else will manifest itself during training so we can know what we're dealing with."

Naruto nodded. "So, are we starting with chakra molding again?"

"Yup," Tsunade answered with a slightly amused smile.

He threw one kunai after another as he tried desperately to distract himself with target practice. The image of Naruto in his nightmare from the other day flashed through his head.  _(("Now..." he said, the smile transforming into a sick grin. "Hate me!"))_  Sasuke shook the image away. It was bad enough when his nightmares consisted of Itachi slaughtering his family, but now the one doing those horrible things was Naruto. And again, it was Itachi's fault. He only had these nightmares because of Itachi's illusion. Suddenly, he could swear he saw his elder brother's face over the target on the tree. "I HATE YOU!" he yelled as he threw the kunai. It hit dead center.

A leaf crunched behind him and Sasuke spun on his heal, ready to face his potential attacker. When he saw who it was, he sighed and lowered his weapon.

TenTen grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt."

Sasuke shook his head and went back to throwing kunai. "It's fine."

"Okay." TenTen sat on a nearby log. "I'll just wait till you're done." She took out a kunai and began twirling it on her finger.

After a few throws, Sasuke slowly lowered his arm. "Hey," he said quietly.

TenTen looked up. "Hai?"

"Do you...?" Sasuke tightened his grip on his weapon.

TenTen cocked her head to one side in curiosity.

"Could you show me how you did that throw the last time you were here?" Sasuke asked without looking back.

"What throw?"

"When you hit the target without seeing it."

TenTen's eyebrows rose slightly. "Seriously?" She stood and walked around in front of Sasuke. "The 'great' Sasuke-kun is asking for help?"

Sasuke gritted his teeth. "Forget it," he said angrily as he began to stalk away.

TenTen grabbed his arm. "Wait wait wait. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have teased you. I'm honored that you want my help," she said with a reassuring smile.

Sasuke gave her a suspicious look and then nodded.

"Okay. Now, when you're looking at your target, you have to visualize a grid over the area," TenTen said as she gestured at the target.

Sasuke frowned in thought. "Okay."

"Make sure your 'grid' is slightly bigger than your target. That way, if you can't see the target, you can just count the number of grid squares from the outer edge to the middle."

"You can actually  _do_  that?" Sasuke asked with disbelief.

TenTen made a short laugh. "I've been perfecting it since I was five."

Sasuke's eyes widened as the reality of what he'd just been told sank in.  _Then, that time...that means she did that on instinct!_

"I'm sure you'll get it much faster with the Sharingan. Anyway, I just realized I'm hungry. I'll see ya later," TenTen said with a smile and a wave.

"TenTen..."

"Hai?"

Sasuke paused for a moment before continuing. "Thanks," he answered, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

A wide grin broke over TenTen's face. "Anytime. Ja!"

As Sasuke watched her leave the area he smiled to himself.  _It's nice to know not every girl is part of my fan club._  With that thought, he went back to his training.

 

* * *

Tomoyo had just cracked an egg into the pan on the stove in front of her when she heard a knock on her front door. She opened it to see Naruto standing there. "Naruto-chan!" she said with a smile.

Naruto stared at her for a moment. "Chan?" he said with an incredulous expression.

"Oh! Sorry. It's just that I used to call Minato 'chan' because he was short too and..." Tomoyo trailed off at Naruto's expression going from incredulous to downright insulted.

She cleared her throat. "Um...anyway. Would... you like to come in?" Naruto nodded and walked inside. "Go ahead and sit on the couch. I just started cooking breakfast." Naruto sat down. "You like ramen right? Oh wait, that was a stupid question. You're Minato's son; of course, you like ramen. Be back in a jiff!"

Naruto blinked rapidly as he watched Tomoyo practically skip into the kitchen nook.  _"That was...weird."_

Tomoyo came back into the main room with two bowls of breakfast styled ramen and handed one to her cousin. "I hope you don't mind, I like fried egg chunks in it."

Naruto's eyebrows went up for a moment as he accepted the bowl. He took a bite and smiled. "This is good."

"I'm glad you like it!" Tomoyo said with a smile. After a moment her face became serious and she put her bowl down on the coffee table in front of them. "I'm really glad you're here," she said in a voice that made Naruto look at her curiously. "I was starting to think you didn't want to see me. I...I wouldn't blame you. ...Especially after what Noriko-chan did..." she finished quietly as a tear slid down her face.

Naruto put his bowl down. "I don't hate you...if that's what you were thinking. It's just that...I don't understand some things."

Tomoyo sniffed and wiped some of her tears away. "Like what?"

"Like Baa-chan..."

"Baa-chan?"

"Sorry, it's something I call Kaa-san."

" _Tsunade puts up with someone calling her granny?!"_

"Anyway. She told me you're a good person. I don't understand how you could do what you did if you were."

Tomoyo sighed heavily. "It was...to make sure N... Noriko-chan," more tears made their way down her face, "wasn't alone..." she said as she rested her forehead on her close-fisted palm.

"Oh..."

Silence.

"I'm sorry she...died," Naruto offered, feeling highly inadequate.

"I'll move on," Tomoyo said softly. "I did when Minato-kun died." Tomoyo looked at Naruto. "You look just like he did at your age."

"Kaa-san said the same thing."

Silence.

"What was my dad like?" Naruto asked suddenly.

Tomoyo's mouth curled into a small smile. "He was a royal pain in the ass," she said with a laugh.

"Huh?"

"Before he met Kushina, Minato spent most of his time training, pulling pranks, picking on me for being tall, and acting like he was God's gift to women," she said with an eye roll. "He was also loud," she added as an afterthought.

Naruto just stared at Tomoyo.

"Of course a lot of his attitude towards women was because of Jiraiya."

Naruto let out a small snort of a laugh.

Tomoyo's smile became warm. "But Minato-kun was also warm and caring. He had the strangest power to make people trust him and to change their hearts." A happy tear rolled down her cheek. "I've never known someone so brave. He never gave up. Even when it looked like there was no possible way he could win, he  _found_  a way...I'll always miss him."

Naruto's cheeks were moist with tears. "I wish I could've known him."

"So do I...He would've been a great father," Tomoyo replied. She suddenly wrapped up Naruto in a warm hug. "I'm so glad you're alive. It's like a part of him is too," she cried.

Naruto was surprised she had hugged him, but he didn't pull away. "Thanks...that means a lot to me."

Tomoyo sat up and wiped her eyes. "Would you mind...if I stayed in Konoha?"

Naruto grinned. "Are you kidding? I'll kick your ass if you  _don't_  stay."

Tomoyo laughed. "Thanks." She took a deep breath. "Well, we should eat this ramen before it gets cold, neh?"

"Hai!" Naruto replied before grabbing his bowl and shoveling in ramen.

_Tomoyo smiled warmly. "Yup...just like Minato."_

 

* * *

Sakura walked into the kitchen where her mother was snacking on some odango. "Kaa-san?"

"Yeah?"

I need to talk to you...about Naruto," Sakura said carefully.

Mrs. Haruno put down her odango. "Okay. What about him?"

Sakura was relieved that her mother didn't seem upset about the topic and sat down in one of the chairs surrounding the table. "When I was nine and you told me he couldn't come to my birthday party. Was it...because he had Kyuubi sealed inside him?"

Mrs. Haruno sighed and hung her head a bit. "Yes."

"But he wasn't the Kyuubi!" Sakura replied, her disapproval obvious.

"I know that, Honey. But what you have to understand is that very few people knew exactly how the seal worked. I honestly thought he was a ticking time bomb—that the Kyuubi could've taken him over. I was afraid of him hurting you, no matter how nice he was."

"That's really awful, Kaa-san," Sakura said with a glare.

"I know. In fact, the day you told me he was on your team, I was terrified. I even went to Sandaime-sama to ask him to put you on a different team. It took a long talk with him for me to understand that I had nothing to be afraid of."

"He waited..." Sakura said angrily.

"Nani?"

"He waited that whole day for me...outside...in the rain."

Mrs. Haruno gasped as her hand flew to her mouth. "I...I never knew. Sakura-chan, I'm so sorry."

"I'm not the one you need to apologize to," Sakura replied, most of her anger replaced with simple sincerity.

"You're right."

Silence.

"I have an idea. Why don't you invite him to dinner tomorrow?" Mrs. Haruno said with a smile.

Sakura smiled widely. "I'm sure he'll like that."

 

* * *

"How did you get back to Konoha so quick?"

Tomoyo gave Naruto an odd look. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you shouldn't have been able to get back to Orochimaru's place so fast. It's almost a day's walk to the Sound."

"Have you heard of Hiraishin no jutsu?"

"That's the jutsu Chichiuei used to teleport, right?"

"Hai." Tomoyo smiled. "When I heard of my Uncle's plan to have your mother killed I told Minato-kun. As a 'thank you', he taught me Hiraishin no jutsu. I'm not nearly as good at it as he was. It requires the use of an 'anchor' seal at the place you want to teleport to. Minato-kun could've teleported all the way to Konoha in one shot. I had to use the extra anchor points Minato hid throughout the Fire Country. The main one is under the family crest on the gates of the Namikaze complex."

"The Namikaze complex? I didn't even know we had one!"

Tomoyo chuckled. "It's not even worth mentioning anymore. It's totally run down." Her laughing stopped when she noticed a sudden look of determination in Naruto's eyes.

"I'm gonna rebuild it," he said, his fist clenched in front of his face.

"What?-! Naruto-kun, you're crazy. That place is condemned, not to mention huge."

"I can do it. As soon as I make jounin, I'll do it," Naruto answered with an ambitious grin.

"Why when you make jounin?"

"I can't afford it on a genin's salary," Naruto replied with a pout.

Tomoyo laughed. "Well, then I'm sure you'll rebuild it soon. With the skills Kakashi-kun told me you have, you must be chuunin already."

Naruto twitched and looked down. "No...I'm not."

Tomoyo bit her lip. "Oh...sorry."

"It's okay." His eyes regained their light after a moment. "Hey, can you teach me Hiraishin?"

"Sure, but after you finish your chakra control training with Tsunade-san. I don't want you blowing yourself up." Tomoyo replied. She laughed at Naruto's dejected expression.

Tomoyo stood and walked over to a very fat backpack in the back of the room. After rummaging around in it for a moment she pulled out a very ornate looking kunai and sat back down next to Naruto. "This was Minato-kun's. Kakashi-kun asked me to give it to you," she said as she held it out to him.

Naruto took the kunai. It had prongs on the bottom of it like a sai and the handle had a white wrap on it imprinted with some kanji.

"This is how he used the Hiraishin in battle. Once he marked his enemies with this kunai, they were dead," Tomoyo said with pride.

Naruto smiled and put the kunai in his hip pouch. "Thanks."

"Okay, my turn to ask a question." Tomoyo stared at her cousin for a moment. "Why on earth do you wear that blindingly bright outfit?"

Naruto blinked a few times before answering. "Cause I like it?"

"Naruto-kun. Wearing that outfit is like shouting 'I'm over here!' to the enemy."

Naruto pursed his lips in annoyance and folded his arms.

"Hey, would you allow me to treat you to some new clothes?" Tomoyo asked.

Naruto looked down at his current attire. "I dunno."

"Pleeeeeease? If you don't like what I buy for you then you don't have to wear it, but I just wanna give it a try."

After a moment Naruto relented. "Okay...but it has to have orange on it."

Tomoyo frowned in thought and then smiled. "I have an idea."

 

* * *

Naruto wandered around the garden in front of his house, waiting for Tomoyo to return. He smiled when Hinata came around the corner of the road. "Hey, Hina-chan!"

Hinata smiled and blushed at the sudden 'nickname'. "Hina-chan?"

"You don't like it?" Naruto asked with a dejected expression.

Hinata waved her hands around in front of her. "No no! I do! I just didn't expect it."

Naruto smiled. "Are we goin' out for ramen today?"

"Of course." Hinata saw Naruto look at the road like he was waiting for something. "What is it?"

"Tomoyo-nee-san went to buy me some new clothes," Naruto grumbled.

Hinata giggled. "Maybe you'll like them." She looked up at the sky, which was quickly going from white puffy clouds to dark and threatening. "We should get inside. I think..." At that moment the clouds opened up and both teens were drenched. "It's going to rain," she finished as she pushed her wet bangs from her face. She began to walk toward the house and suddenly felt Naruto's hand holding her wrist.

"Let's stay out here," he said with a grin.

"B...but it's pouring."

"The water's kinda warm. C'mon, Hina-chan," Naruto begged.

Hinata could never resist him when Naruto gave her that million dollar smile. "Okay."

Naruto grabbed a small ball of mud and flung it at Hinata's jacket.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata squeaked.

"Get me back if you're mad. Or are you chicken?" Naruto said with a positively evil smile.

A smirk slowly spread over Hinata's face. "I am not a chicken! That is my ninja way!" She flung a mud ball of her own; connecting it with her boyfriend's hip.

Naruto retaliated with a blob to Hinata's midriff. She scooped up a huge amount of mud, ran up to him, and shoved it down the back of his shirt. Naruto sputtered as the substance oozed down his back. "Damn you!" he said with a laugh. He made a Kage Bunshin. "Okay...now it's on!"

Hinata activated her Byakugan. "I won't lose!" she giggled.

Naruto found a spot in the garden vacant of plants, formed the rasengan and spun it in mud, causing a huge amount of it to fly at Hinata. Before he knew it, she was in a stance he recognized all too well.  _"When did she learn...?"_

"Kaiten!" Hinata yelled. She spun just before the mud hit and managed to knock most of it right back at Naruto, effectively burying him in it.

Naruto cried out in protest as he was quickly turned into something resembling the creature from the Black Lagoon. He calmly walked up to Hinata. "When did you learn Kaiten?"

"Neji-nii-san has been teaching me." Hinata looked at her clothes, which were fairly well coated in mud. "I still haven't perfected it though."

Naruto laughed and wiped away some of the mud from Hinata's face. "You're still cute," he said softly before leaning in for a kiss.

As soon as their lips touched they heard footsteps behind them. "Do I even want to know?"

Naruto and Hinata quickly shook their heads. Tomoyo, who was under an umbrella, held up the bag from the clothing store. "Guess it's a good thing you have something to change into."

Naruto and Hinata looked at each other and burst out laughing.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked that. Please lemme know what you thought of the NaruHina fluff. :)
> 
> Please review. All the happy reviews brighten my day! Thanks!
> 
> I finally posted what little I finished of the radio play of this fic. A radio play is pretty much a T.V show without the picture. It has sound FX, BG music and voice actors. The chapter segments are in MP3 format. You can find it in my profile :D


	32. The Shinobi's New Clothes

 

 

Naruto took the bag of items Tomoyo had bought for him into his room and locked the door. He sighed, set the bag on his bed, and reached inside.

 

* * *

As Hinata and Tomoyo waited for Naruto to come back from changing his clothes Nabiki walked into the room. "Hi, Hinata...chan." She was silent for a moment as she took in Hinata's muddy outfit. "Whoa. What the heck happened to you?"

Hinata blushed slightly. "Naruto-kun and I had a...mud fight."

Nabiki grinned. "Why am I not surprised that Naruto-kun was involved?"

Hinata giggled.

"You want something to change into till you get home?" Nabiki asked.

Hinata nodded fervently. "Yes please."

"Wait here a sec," Nabiki replied. With that, she disappeared into the hallway.

Hinata folded her hands in her lap and waited patiently. Nabiki returned with a small bundle of clothes and handed them to Hinata. "Don't worry, I made sure to pick out something tame."

Hinata bowed her head. "Arigato. I'll change into them after Naruto-kun comes back."

About a minute later they heard Naruto's voice from the hall. "Okay, I'm ready!"

"Well come out then!" Tomoyo said as she wandered in from the kitchen with a sandwich.

"Okay," Naruto replied. He walked into the room and Hinata's jaw hit the floor. He was wearing a pair of slightly loose, leaf-green cargo pants, his shuriken holster and wrap on his right leg. His equipment pouch was on his left hip. He had on a medium-blue T-shirt with a large orange swirl on the front and two inches of fishnet on the ends of the sleeves. The last accessory was a pair of fingerless gloves the same color as his shirt, with metal handguards on the back which were swirl shaped and orange. "What do you think?" he asked with a hopeful smile.

Tomoyo smiled in approval. "I think you're gonna have to beat the girls off with a stick."

Nabiki laughed. "Don't say things like that - You'll worry Hinata-chan."

Naruto had gotten compliments from everyone but the one he wanted. "Hina-chan?"

Hinata barely managed to blink away her trance. "H...hai. You...you look...wonderful," she breathed. She walked over to him and put her hand on his face. "I...never thought...you could look even more handsome than before."

A grin spread across Naruto's face and he kissed her. "Thanks, Hina-chan."

"What about you?" Tomoyo asked Naruto. "What do you think?"

"I like it. I really like it a lot. Thanks, Tomoyo-nee-san," Naruto said as he gave her a hug.

"Hey, Hinata-chan. You should go change," Nabiki offered.

"H...hai. Would it be alright if I washed up too?"

"Sure. Just go down the hall, fifth door on the left. Watch it though, the water in the shower gets hot fast," Nabiki warned.

Hinata nodded and hurried away.

 

* * *

She pulled out each of the carefully placed bobby pins and clips from her hair. Once they were all sitting on the counter in a neat pile she reached up once again and slid off...a wig. As Hinata stared in the mirror she gently fingered her now nearly shoulder-length hair. "I won't be able to hide this from father much longer," she said with a frown. She remembered the way Hiashi had reacted when she had asked if she could grow her hair long.

 

-FLASHBACK-

"Hinata, I have told you before, until you are a great warrior you are not worthy of long hair."

"B...but what does long hair have to do with being a warrior?"

"Few families still carry on the tradition, but only a few generations ago warriors wore their hair long as a sign of loyalty to their feudal lord. To have it cut off meant...dishonor."

Hinata's eyes widened and filled with tears.

"You have not been dishonored, but you haven't _earned_ honor in the first place either."

"P...please, Father? Even y...you've said I've improved," Hinata pointed out gently.

"A small amount of improvement does not make you a great warrior! Now, get back to your training."

"B...but, Father..."

"Not another word!" Hiashi said, and then walked away.

 -END FLASHBACK-

 

_"It doesn't make sense. He didn't always think of Neji-Nee-san as a great warrior, but he let him have long hair. Maybe Tsunade-sama knows something."_  She turned the faucet, stepped in the shower, and let the water wash away her thoughts.

 

* * *

When Hinata walked in Nabiki grinned. "I  _knew_  we were about the same height. It's a perfect fit!"

Hinata looked down at her outfit. "Are you sure?" She was wearing a pair of blue denim shorts that stopped about three inches above her knees with an off-white belt. Her shirt was a medium lavender with bell sleeves that came to her mid-forearm. The shirt was also low cut (but not revealing much), with a bodice-like edge and burgundy lacing tying up the chest area to the top.

"You look great!" Nabiki assured her.

Naruto looked like a deer caught in a car's headlights. "Wow...you look...wow..." was all he managed to say.

Hinata blushed heavily. "Arigato, Naruto-kun."

"If he likes it that much, you can keep it," Nabiki said.

Hinata's eyes widened. "No! I couldn't take your clothes from you."

Nabiki shook her head. "Take them. I don't have much time to dress up anyway," she said with a laugh.

Hinata smiled. "I guess a new outfit would be nice."

"Very nice," Naruto commented softly as he stared at her. Hinata quickly resembled a tomato and Naruto's eyes widened. "Did I say that out loud?" he asked with the look of someone who wanted to hide.

Nabiki snorted. "Fraid so."

"Hina-chan...I...I didn't mean. I...I'm not a pervert, I swear!" Naruto said, waving his hands in front of him.

"Naruto-kun, you're a guy. It's totally normal," Nabiki commented.

Naruto glared at her. "I am NOT a pervert!"

"I didn't say you were. I meant that it's normal to react that way. Now, if you ran over to her and grabbed her butt, then- you'd be a pervert," Nabiki said.

Naruto was positively bug-eyed. "G...g...g...grabbed..."

"N...Naruto-kun?" Hinata said in a small voice.

Naruto looked at her. His expression showed he was horrified over what Nabiki had just said.

Hinata smiled shyly. "It's okay. I'm...I'm not mad."

Naruto visibly relaxed and blinked rapidly in surprise. "R...really?"

"Nhm. In fact...I...I'm glad you think I'm so...pretty," Hinata answered, fiddling nervously with her hands.

Naruto smiled. "You're the best, Hina-chan."

 

* * *

Naruto and Hinata, holding hands, walked down the streets of Konoha. They were heading for Hinata's house when Naruto felt a tugging on his pant leg and looked down to see a small girl around five years old. "Hi," he said brightly.

The girl held up a couple of roses. "Naruto-kun...Sissy asked me to give these to you."

"Sissy? Who's..." Naruto trailed off as he noticed Hayama Momiji hiding behind a newsstand and frowned. But he wasn't about to hurt the feelings of such an adorable girl as her little sister. He smiled brightly at the child. "Arigato."

"You're welcome!" the girl replied as she ran off.

Once he was sure the girl was out of sight he scanned the area for Momiji, but she was gone. He turned back to Hinata, who was looking very worried. "Hina-chan. Just forget about that.  _You're_  my girlfriend," he said as he stared into her eyes. He glared at the spot he'd seen Momiji at earlier. "I'm gonna find her and set her straight."

 

* * *

Momiji's heart was pounding as she made her way home.  _"One small step at a time. I'll make him see that I'm way better for him than Hyuuga Hinata."_

"OI! Momiji!"

Momiji smiled. "I knew it would work," she said to herself. She turned around, but her smile vanished when she saw Naruto's angry expression.

"What's wrong with you?" he demanded.

"Wr...wrong?" Momiji stammered. 

"You knew Hinata is my girlfriend and you gave me flowers?"

"I...I thought you'd like them."

"No...I don't," Naruto answered coldly.

Momiji winced.

Naruto looked down for a moment and sighed. "Look, I know what it's like to want someone you can't have, but you hurt Hina-chan's feelings. If it happens again, I won't be your friend anymore," Naruto said calmly.

Momiji's eyes filled with tears. "I...I'm sorry." She turned and ran away from Naruto.

Naruto sighed and walked back toward town.

 

* * *

**Two days later...**

Kakashi took a deep breath and knocked on Tomoyo's door. It had been so long since they had been able to just sit and talk. The door opened, and a smiling Tomoyo appeared.

"Kakashi-kun! Come on in!" she said brightly.

Kakashi's visible eye crinkled with his smile. "Arigato."

"Sit anywhere; I'll get us some tea," Tomoyo said.

Kakashi sat down on her couch. "So, when are you planning on moving to an apartment?"

"I have to wait for my jounin status to be reinstated so I can have enough money," Tomoyo answered as she walked in with two cups of tea and sat down next to Kakashi. "Until then, Tsunade-sama is paying for the hotel."

"I see."

Silence.

"Tomoyo-chan...why didn't you tell me you were leaving?" Kakashi asked in a soft tone.

The smile fell from Tomoyo's face. "I...couldn't. I didn't think I was coming back." She put down her tea. "I  _had_  to go. When I heard Noriko-chan had started a gang I..." She sighed. "I wanted to keep her from becoming a bad person." Tears fell down her cheeks. "I guess I failed," she said as she looked down. She felt a finger under her chin and raised her eyes to meet the face of its owner.

Kakashi pulled his headband away from his other eye. "Tomoyo-chan, you didn't fail. She chose honor in the end."

Tomoyo nodded. "Thank you," she said with a small, grateful smile before giving him a hug. After a moment, she pulled away from him and inclined her head in curiosity. "Kakashi-kun...may I ask why you wear that mask?"

Kakashi sighed. "Because I didn't want girls chasing me," he answered with a half smile.

"I don't get it."

"I didn't want women to be attracted to me. Telling women 'no' all the time got to be too bothersome...so I started wearing the mask."

Tomoyo's face was a blank slate for about five seconds...then she doubled over with laughter.

Kakashi regarded her with a bemused smile. "It's not  _that_  funny."

"I'm sorry," Tomoyo said in between giggles. "It's the idea of you having  _fangirls_!" she said as her hysterical laughter resumed.

"They're a pain. I tried to convince Sasuke to go with a mask once, but he wouldn't listen."

Tomoyo's giggles slowed, and she stared at Kakashi. After a moment, she reached up and grabbed the edges of his mask. He instinctively flinched and pulled away. Tomoyo frowned.

"Please, Kakashi-kun? I want to see your face," Tomoyo pleaded. "I haven't seen it since the year I left."

Kakashi looked down for a moment, then sighed and nodded. Tomoyo pulled down the mask...and sucked in a breath. "You're..." she reached up and reverently touched his face. "I didn't know...that any of the angels were men."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, a tiny bit of cheese there, but I'm a sucker for fluff.
> 
> My crappy drawing of Naruto and Hinata's new outfits  
> 


	33. Confessions

 

 

As soon as Naruto got to the more populated streets of Konoha, he noticed a lot of people staring at him, especially girls. A blush crept over his cheeks, and he jogged the rest of the way to Ichiraku.

"Naruto-kun!" Naruto heard Sakura yell as he slurped up the last of his ramen. He turned around and smiled. "Hey, Sakura-chan!"

"You never said if you were coming to my party or not," Sakura said.

"Oh! You bet!" Naruto answered with a foxy grin.

Sakura smiled, but the expression quickly fell away. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Naruto cocked his head to one side in curiosity. "Sure." He paid for his meal, and he and Sakura left.

 

* * *

Naruto and Sakura were sitting on the river bank next to the training ground where they had first become a team. Sakura looked at her friend, unsure of how to begin. "Iruka-sensei...told me about the present," she said quietly.

Naruto frowned. "I didn't want you to know about that. Why couldn't you leave it alone?"

"I just...wanted to understand what had hurt you," Sakura replied and chewed her lip.

"Even so, you knew I didn't want you to know. Why the hell can't you let me have any privacy?" Naruto asked in an angry and hurt tone.

Sakura's eyes misted over. "Because you're my best friend. I care about you. I can't stand not being able to help."

Naruto stood up. "Do you have any idea how embarrassing it is?! What kind of loser sits out in the rain waiting for someone he knows isn't coming?" He turned his head away from Sakura. "I was so stupid."

"You weren't stupid, Naruto-kun. I really did want to be there. It was my Mom." Sakura's expression hardened in anger and she clenched her fist. "She told me you couldn't come. She wouldn't even let me call to tell you."

Naruto turned back to Sakura. "Really?"

Sakura stood up and hugged her friend. "Really," she said quietly. "Naruto-kun, I'm so sorry. I should've gone to tell you. I was too weak to disobey her."

"I don't blame you Sakura-chan. You were only nine."

"Arigato," Sakura said with a sniff.

After a moment, Naruto sniffed also and broke the hug. "I have something for you."

"Huh?"

Naruto smiled. "Follow me!"

 

* * *

Sakura looked at the pile of boxes in the center of the living room of Naruto's old apartment in amazement. "You've lived at Tsunade-sama's all this time and you  _still_  haven't moved all your stuff out of here?"

Naruto walked over to the pile and shrugged. "Haven't really had the time." He began digging through the contents of the boxes. "It's gotta be here somewhere." He opened another box.

 

* * *

Sakura was sitting on Naruto's couch and had started to nod off when...

"I found it!"

Sakura looked up to see Naruto holding a present. It was wrapped (messily) in blue paper and tied with a pink bow. "Naruto...is this...?" Sakura began in disbelief.

"It's...a little old," Naruto said as he handed her the present, "but I hope you like it."

" _He kept it...all this time?"_  she thought. "Arigato." Sakura sat on the couch and began to open it. Inside was something wrapped in tissue paper with an envelope sitting on top.

"Open the card first," Naruto said nervously.

Sakura did as instructed. On the front of the card, it said  _happy birthday_  and had a picture of a brightly decorated cake on it. She opened it, and read the inside:

_Dear Sakura-chan,_

_Thank you so much for inviting me to your party. You're the first kid who's ever been this nice to me._

_Thanks,_

_Naruto_

Tears rolled down Sakura's cheeks. "I'm sorry I never got to see this...when it meant something."

Naruto made a small smile. "It still does."

Sakura wiped her eyes, pulled away the tissue paper, and gasped. Inside the box was a tiny, crystal dolphin. She gingerly took it from where it lay. "H...how did you know?"

"One time, before you asked me to your party, I heard you telling Ino that you loved dolphins."

"Thank you. I love it," Sakura said with a smile.

"No prob. Anyway, I gotta get going. I'm...taking Hina-chan on a walk," Naruto said as he blushed.

Sakura grinned. "I'm glad for you two. You seem so happy."

Naruto's smile became content. "Yeah...we are."

"By the way...I love your new outfit," Sakura said.

Naruto smiled. "Thanks."

 

* * *

Naruto and Hinata sat on top of the Hokage monument, holding hands and looking out over the city. "Naruto-kun?"

Naruto turned to her and smiled. "Yeah?"

"I...I wanted to tell you something."

"What is it?"

Hinata gulped. She looked at his face, nearly losing herself in the two pools of blue that were his eyes. "I...I lo..." She stopped for a moment and began fiddling with her hands, desperately trying to keep herself from tenting her fingers. She looked up at him again. "I...I love you." She froze in place, afraid to move.

Naruto couldn't think, couldn't move—could barely breathe. In other words, he was in shock. He had no idea what to say, and he hated that because he knew she was waiting for an answer.

Hinata was suddenly terrified she'd told him too soon. "Naruto-kun?"

The first, ever so wonderfully intelligent thing that tumbled out of Naruto's mouth was, "Really?"

Hinata blinked in confusion. "Wh...what?"

"You...you really love me? Like...  _ **in**_  love with me?" Naruto asked, the look of shock still on his face.

Shaking, Hinata nodded. "H...hai."

Naruto swallowed. "I never thought a girl would love me. I...I don't know what to say."

A tear escaped Hinata's right eye. "You...don't have to say anything. It's...o...okay if you don't feel the same way."

"I don't know how I feel. I mean, I like you...a  _lot_. I'm just not sure if it's love. Can you give me some time?" Naruto asked with an apologetic tone.

More tears fell down Hinata's pale face. "H...hai."

Naruto frowned. "Don't cry. I hate seeing you cry," he said as he wiped away her tears.

Hinata took in a shaky breath and nodded.

Naruto pulled her to him. She laid her head on his shoulder and the two stared at the early evening sky.

 

* * *

"Okay. Let's start with molding for now," Tsunade said to Naruto as Tomoyo watched from a relatively safe distance.

"Hai," Naruto put his hands together and chakra began to surround his body.

Tomoyo's mouth dropped open as she stared at Naruto's chakra. "It's so...beautiful."

It was like someone had dropped paint in all the colors of the rainbow into a bowl of liquid light and stirred, just enough to make the colors swirl and dance in delicate ribbons.

"It is pretty, isn't it?" Tsunade said with a warm smile. "Alright, Naruto. Let's try something simple."

Naruto put his hands into his favorite seal. "KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" He instantly regretted using that technique. Clones filled the entire field...but they also extended off the field, into the forest, onto the streets, and finally ending near the front gates of the village.

Tsunade and Tomoyo's eyes wide as could be. "I think this is going to be more difficult than we anticipated," Tsunade commented.

"The Namikaze stamina strikes again," Tomoyo said with a wry smile.

Naruto released the jutsu and stumbled a bit before sitting down while he regained his strength. "The Namikaze stamina?"

Tomoyo nodded. "Nhm. Every member of the Namikaze family has always had massive stamina and huge chakra stores. I supposed you could call it a bloodline limit, although no one ever did...officially."

"Then why couldn't Noriko create the steel jutsu again?" Naruto asked.

Tomoyo frowned. "For some reason, it passed over her. We never found out why."

"So, you have the same abilities?"

"Nhm. But nowhere  _near_  your level. At best, I could fill about a third of this field. Minato's level of stamina and chakra was unusually high, even for a member of our family, so of course, yours is too. Not to mention the niji chakra amplifies it."

"Maybe you should just try henge for now, Kiddo," Tsunade suggested.

"HENGE!"

Tsunade and Tomoyo began laughing. "Well, we know who's on your mind," Tomoyo said.

"Huh?" Naruto looked down to see he had transformed into Hinata. "AH!" he yelled and quickly canceled the jutsu.

Tsunade coughed a bit as she tried to regain her composure. She lost the battle when she saw Naruto's face was red as a tomato.

"Alright already!" Naruto protested loudly.

Tsunade wiped the tears of laughter from her brown eyes. "Alright. It seems like henge is no problem, but I'm tentative about having you use other, wider spreading jutsus, like kage bunshin, until you have a better handle on this."

Naruto frowned, and then perked up. "What about rasengan?"

Tomoyo's head whipped sideways, and she stared at Naruto. "You can perform rasengan? Who taught you?"

"Ero-sennin."

"Who the heck is Ero-sennin?"

"Oh...right. I mean Jiraiya," Naruto answer with a slight snicker.

Tomoyo laughed as well. "I'm not the slightest bit surprised."

Naruto grinned and held out his hand, palm up. As he concentrated, a rainbow-colored ball of light appeared.

"Good. Now hold it there for a few minutes," Tsunade instructed.

The rasengan in Naruto's hand suddenly grew in size by a small margin. "What the hell?"

"What?" Tsunade asked.

"It got...bigger," Naruto replied.

Tsunade walked closer to him and eyed the rasengan warily. "Maybe you should cancel it for now."

Now nervous, Naruto nodded and concentrated on the jutsu. Unfortunately, it had the opposite effect, and the ball doubled in size.

Tomoyo and Tsunade instinctively jumped back a few feet. "Naruto! Shut it down!"

Naruto's eyes were wide with panic. "I...I can't!"

"Tomoyo-chan! RUN!" Tsunade screamed.

Tomoyo didn't move, obviously concerned for her cousin's well being.

"GO! I'll help him!" Tsunade urged.

Tomoyo gritted her teeth in frustration but did as she was told.

The ball grew again. Tsunade was afraid—afraid for her son and for the village she'd sworn to protect. "Naruto, you need to calm down! The adrenaline your body's producing is making it grow faster!"

Naruto closed his eyes and tried to think of things that calmed him—Ramen, the sounds of the river near his old apartment...Hinata. The rasengan shrank in size, eventually dissipating altogether. He opened his eyes and sighed in relief.

Tsunade ran to Naruto and pulled him into a crushing hug.

"Kaa-san...I'm okay."

Tsunade sighed and released her son. "I need to talk to Jiraiya about this, but for now, I'm removing you from active duty."

"NANI?!"

"I'm sorry, but it's just too risky to give you missions right now. Please understand," Tsunade said as she put her hand on his shoulder.

Naruto gritted his teeth. "Fine," he growled.

"I'll see you back at the house, neh?"

"Hai," Naruto replied quietly. As he watched her go, he suddenly found himself feeling a little woozy and sat down. As he held his head in his hands, he heard a voice.

**"Still pathetic as usual, eh?"**

Naruto sat up, stock straight. "Who said that?"

" **You've forgotten what I sound like already? I'm hurt, Brat."**

Naruto's eyes widened in shock as he barely managed to whisper the name of the voice's owner. "Kyuubi."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Dives into reader proof room and activates defense systems)) -cough- Ya know what's funny about the last 5 sentences? I literally did not have that planned until 5 minutes before I wrote it.


	34. Old Friends

 

 

* * *

Naruto wasn't sure exactly what he was feeling, but he knew that devastated covered at least one aspect of it. He'd finally been free of his curse, and it had only lasted for just over a blissful month and a half. He angrily entered the containment area. "What the HELL are you doing here?-!" he shouted, jabbing a finger in the direction of the cell.

Kyuubi cocked an eyebrow.  **"Well, if that's how you're going to greet someone who's only here to help, then maybe I should leave."**

"Since when the hell do you willingly help me? And aren't you supposed to be dead?-!"

Kyuubi chuckled and stepped into the minimal light of the room.  **"I am."**

Naruto's face twisted into confusion at the sight before his eyes. Kyuubi's body was semi-transparent, barely there, like... like a ghost. "AHHHHHHHH! You're a ghost! Get the hell away from me!"

Kyuubi rolled his eyes and smacked his paw onto his forehead.  **"Mortals."**  He phased through the bars of his former prison and 'sat down', hovering a few inches off the ground.  **"Calm down, Brat. I don't have time for your idiocy."**

"I will NOT calm down! You..." something clicked in Naruto's mind, "you came out of your cage..."

Silence.

Silence.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Kyuubi growled and slammed a massive paw down over Naruto, pinning him to the ground.  **"SILENCE! I am beginning to regret coming here. Now shut up before I gut you like a fish!"**

Naruto was instantly silent.

 **"That's better. Now, as I was trying to explain before I was so rudely interrupted, I am here to help you. Although I'm honestly starting to think I'm insane for doing this."**  He felt Naruto's body relax and decided it was safe to release him.

Naruto slowly got to his feet. "How?"

**"How, what, Brat?"**

"How are you here when you're, dead?"

Kyuubi gave Naruto a bemused smirk.  **"Hmph. Mortals think in such limited ways. Just because I have lost my hold on my physical body in your realm, does not mean the same has happened in mine."**

"Huh?"

Kyuubi heaved a great sigh in an attempt to quell his growing desire to strangle the child in front of him.  **"Listen carefully, because I refuse to repeat myself. Youma are very different from other forms of life. Our true form cannot exist in your world. The air is like poison to us. Therefore, we are born with, in essence, two bodies. The one humans normally see is an outer shell made to protect our true, non-corporeal form. If the outer body is destroyed we do 'die' in this realm, but we are perfectly fine in our own."**  He paused for a moment.  **"Do you understand?"**

"I...think so. But...if the air here is poisonous to you, then how can you be here?"

Kyuubi growled and balled his paws into semi-fists.  **"Auuuuugh! I swear, Child! You are _thicker_  than a..."** He stopped himself and let out a calming breath through his teeth.  **"Look around you,"**  he said slowly.  **"Where are we?"**

"The seal?"

**"And is there air from your world inside the seal?"**

Naruto considered this for a moment. "No..." He paused. "So...you can only come here because there's no air in the seal?"

Kyuubi sighed in relief.  **"Yes. Alright, now that we've gotten that sorted out, let's get to the matter at hand."**

"And what's that?"

**"Well, believe it or not, during the last few years of the time I spent here I began to respect you."**

Naruto's eyebrows went up, but he stayed quiet.

**"In fact, it completely perplexes me how someone like you can come up with such brilliant battle strategies and yet not be able to grasp concepts that are much simpler by comparison."**

Naruto glared at Kyuubi then sighed. "I don't know..."

Kyuubi was taken aback. He had expected the child to yell at him in defiance.  ** _"Could he actually be maturing?"_**

"It's just...when I'm in a battle everything seems...clear. It's like it helps me focus. Does that make any sense?"

 **"Hmm. Actually...it does. It makes a lot of sense. An unusually insightful observation...coming from you,"**  Kyuubi finished with a smirk.  _ **"And it's something I think I can use to help him,"**_  he thought.

"Gee, thanks," Naruto grumbled.

**"At any rate, we're getting off topic. I witness your... problem with your new chakra today. And I decided I wished to help."**

"Why?"

**"You don't know how rare a human you are, boy. You've kept going when even one of your revered Hokages would have given up long ago. That, alone, is enough to earn my respect."**

Naruto's mouth slowly curled into a smile. "Thanks."

Kyuubi smiled as well.  **"Now listen closely, as we have a lot to do and not much time to do it in."**

"Why not?"

**"Coming here through such a means takes up a lot of energy, so I can't do it for long."**

"Oh. How long  _can_  you stay?"

**"Three days...a week at most."**

"Okay."

**"First things first. Let's work on your healing powers."**

 

* * *

Sasuke frowned as he trudged along behind TenTen, silently wondering why he had agreed to go with her. "This better be worth my time. I need to train."

"Don't be such a stick in the mud," TenTen called behind her.

The two arrived at TenTen's private training area in her back yard. She walked over to a storage shed with a huge sign on it that read:  _TenTen's stuff. Touch it and die._

Sasuke raised an eyebrow as TenTen went inside and decided it would be best if he waited for her in the yard. After a few moments of clanking sounds, she emerged cradling a cloth-wrapped bundle. "What's that?"

TenTen grinned. "My new shinies." She unwrapped the fabric to reveal an ornate box that looked like it had a shell made of pure onyx. She set the box onto a stump and opened it.

Sasuke had never seen a more magnificent set of kunai in his life. They were all as black as the box they lay in. Silver-plated dragons carved into them wound around the handles. The blades were sharp, so sharp that Sasuke dared not touch the edge to test them. "These are..."

TenTen smiled. "I knew you'd like to see them." She picked one up and marveled at the craftsmanship. "I've been saving for these for an entire year. The metal has been folded thirty times and has a heat treated edge!" she said with the tone of a mother talking about a favored child. Sasuke made a small snort and TenTen turned to him, eyes wide. "Did...did you just laugh?"

Sasuke suddenly looked uncomfortable. "No."

TenTen's eyes were positively gleeful. "Yes, you did!"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed dangerously. "No...I didn't."

"You did too!" TenTen laughed lightly. "Wait till I tell Neji! He'll never believe it!" She suddenly found herself pinned to a tree by Sasuke's arm against her neck. "What the hell is the matter with you?-!" TenTen choked out.

"Listen very carefully..." Sasuke said in a low voice that sent chills down TenTen's spine. " I... _don't_...laugh."

TenTen gritted her teeth and shoved him backward. "You got a real problem, you know that? Get the hell out of my yard!"

"I'm already gone," Sasuke growled before stalking off.

TenTen's mother came out of the house. "TenTen, are you alright? I heard yelling."

"I'm fine." TenTen grumbled. Her face softened when she noticed her mother was in her jounin uniform. "Are you going on a mission?"

"Nhm. I was just about to leave in fact. Are you sure there's nothing you want to talk about?"

"Hai." TenTen gave her mother a hug. "Good luck on your mission. Be safe."

TenTen's mother smiled. "I'll be fine." She kissed the top of her daughter's head. "See you later."

"Ja, Kaa-san!" TenTen said with a wave. Once her mother was out of sight she plopped down to the ground with a sigh. "And here I thought I finally had a friend who understood me."

 

* * *

Sakura turned her head to look at him as Sasuke stormed past her. "Sasuke-kun?"

"Leave me alone, Sakura," Sasuke said through gritted teeth.

"What happened?" Sakura said as she grabbed his shoulder.

Sasuke rounded on her. " I said, leave me alone!" He turned and ran towards his apartment.

"Hmm. I better tell Naruto."

 

* * *

Sakura saw Hinata heading toward Naruto's estate and ran to catch up with her. "Hey, Hinata!"

Hinata turned around and smiled. "Sakura-chan."

"Are you going to see Naruto?"

"Hai."

"Mind if I tag along?"

"Of course not."

"Have you seen his new chakra yet?" Sakura asked as she fell into step with her friend.

Hinata shook her head. "No. In fact, I'm going to ask him to show me."

"I just ran into Sasuke-kun. He was really ticked off about something. I thought maybe Naruto could calm him down before he does something stupid."

Hinata let out a soft giggle.

 

* * *

Sakura and Hinata saw Naruto standing out in the middle of the training field, apparently just staring into space. "Naruto-kun!" Hinata called. She didn't get a response and frowned.

"Maybe he didn't hear you," Sakura said with a reassuring smile. "Shannaro! That idiot better not make Hinata worry again," inner Sakura raged. "OI, NARUTO!" Again, no response. Now  _she_  frowned and both girls ran up to him.

They came to a stop. "Naruto-kun? Are you okay?" Hinata bit her lip when he still didn't say anything. "Naruto-kun?" She changed her position so she could see his face. A small gasp escaped her lips.

"Hinata, what is it?" She gasped as well when she saw that Naruto's eyes looked like they had absolutely no life in them. "Naruto-kun!" She began shaking him gently. "Naruto-kun?-! Wake up!"

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata yelled. She turned to Sakura with a look of desperation and both girls gently laid him down. Hinata immediately began checking his vitals. "I don't understand it. His pulse is normal, his breathing is fine, and he doesn't have a temperature."

"What about wounds?"

Hinata looked him over. "No."

"What the hell?"

 

* * *

Naruto looked up from his meditation when he heard voices coming from the outside. "Sakura-chan? Hina-chan?"

 **"Damn annoying females! They would interrupt when you've almost got it,"**  Kyuubi complained with a snarl.

"I better let them know I'm okay. I'll be back later," Naruto replied as he stood up.

 **"Do it quickly. I'll conserve energy while you're gone,"**  Kyuubi said as he shrunk down to the size of a small dog.

Naruto started to snicker.

 **"What?-!"**  Kyuubi growled.

"You're Chibi-Kyuubi!" Naruto said.

**"Shut the hell up, Brat! Besides, your friends are on the verge of all-out panic."**

"Oh right." Naruto stopped laughing and closed his eyes.

 

* * *

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata said when she noticed him looking at her.

"Hina-chan, what are you doing here?" Naruto replied as he sat up.

Sakura smacked him upside the head. "Looking for you, baka!"

"Why were you guys freaking out?"

Sakura's eye twitched. "Because you wouldn't answer us and you looked like you were in a freaking coma!"

Naruto blinked rapidly. "Really?"

Hinata nodded solemnly.

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck. "Wow. I'm sorry, guys. I...had no idea I looked like that from the outside."

"Were you in the seal?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah. I was...talking to Kyuubi," Naruto replied with a swallow.

"What?-!" Hinata exclaimed. "I thought he was dead."

"He was- is...it's hard to explain."

Sakura folded her arms. "Try me."

Naruto sighed. "Okay..."

 

* * *

"So he can only stay a week?" Hinata asked.

Naruto nodded. "Nhm. Hopefully, he can teach me what I need to know before then."

"And just what does he want to teach you?" Sakura asked with suspicion.

"Nothing bad. Just how to heal myself and stuff."

"Are you sure you can trust him, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"I think so. I mean, he really doesn't have any powers in this world anymore."

Sakura frowned. "Mind if I talk to him?"

"Um, I don't think that's a good idea. He's kinda grumpy," Naruto replied.

Sakura frowned.

"Besides, you remember what happened the last time you went into my mind."

"But you'd be there with me, so I'd be safe, right?"

"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan. I just don't think it's a good idea," Naruto said firmly.

Sakura sighed in defeat. "Okay. Just be careful, alright?"

"You got it," Naruto said with a grin. "So what's up?"

"I was wondering if I could see your new chakra," Hinata asked.

Naruto blushed a little. "Sorry, Baa-chan said I can't until she talks to Jiraiya." His face fell. "She also told me I'm off the duty roster until then."

"Ouch," Sakura said out of sympathy. "Neh, can you talk to Sasuke-kun?"

"Why?" Naruto asked as he flicked some dirt off his pants.

"He's really angry about something and you're the only one who can get him to listen."

"Okay. Later though. I gotta train with the Baka Kitsune."

"Oh, before I forget, my Mom wanted you to come to dinner. I was supposed to have you come over yesterday, but I kind of blanked," Sakura said with a blush.

"Your mom? But I thought she hated me."

"No, she was just afraid of you. But that was before she knew more about the seal. She wants to apologize," Sakura said with a smile.

Naruto smiled as well. "What time?"

"Six-o-clock tomorrow. Don't be late."

"Osu!" Naruto said with a salute.

Hinata giggled. "I'll let you get back to training, Naruto-kun."

Naruto gently lifted her chin upwards and kissed her. "Don't be away too long."

"Awwww! You two are so cute!" Sakura gushed.

"Shut up!" Naruto said with a half smile/half grimace.

Sakura laughed and the two girls walked away.

Naruto went back inside the seal. "Okay, let's get back to work."

 

* * *

Tomoyo and Kakashi sat at opposite sides of her coffee table playing Go. She stopped in the middle of placing a piece and stared at him.

Kakashi noticed her stare. "What?"

Tomoyo blinked rapidly. "Sorry..." She tucked some of her hair behind her right ear and turn away a bit. "Kakashi-kun? Do you...still have any feelings for me?"

Kakashi's face showed his surprise. He considered for a moment before speaking. "I think so."

A small smile crept over Tomoyo's face. "I'm glad."

"Care to give it another go?" Kakashi asked with a playful smile.

Tomoyo grinned. "I'd like that."

 

* * *

"Trust me, Baa...Kaa-san. He's only trying to help me," Naruto insisted to Tsunade's scowling face.

Tsunade sighed in defeat. "Alright. Show me what you've got."

Naruto smirked and made a triumphant hmm-ing sound. He took a kunai from his holster. "Now, don't panic."

"What do you m...?" Tsunade began, her words stopping short when Naruto sliced across his left forearm. Tsunade made a horrified sound. "Have you lost it?-!" she yelled as she snatched the weapon away from her son. She began the seals for her healing jutsu when she felt a hand on her arm.

"Don't..." Naruto said through gritted teeth. "I can handle it."

Tsunade reluctantly took a step back. "You've got thirty seconds!"

Naruto began to concentrate and his doujutsu activated.  ** _(("Pour your chakra into the wound. It will react with the damaged tissue naturally.))_**  Naruto remembered the Kyuubi's words. Sweat began to bead on his forehead as the huge cut was filled with the niji chakra. Slowly, it began to close.

Tsunade's breath caught in her throat as she watched Naruto's progress.  _"C'mon, Naruto."_

As the last traces of the wound sealed over the glow of Naruto's chakra began to fade. Finally, there was no indication that his arm had ever been damaged. Breathing just a little heavy, he looked up from his work and grinned at his mother.

"Good job, Kiddo. I'm impressed," Tsunade said with an approving smile.

"Thanks!"

"But, next time you want to show someone your healing abilities, make a  _small_  cut?"

Naruto scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah, I guess I overdid it."

Tsunade let out a short laugh. "You usually do."

"Tsunade-sama, Naruto-sama! Dinner is ready!" came Izumi's voice from the dining room.

"Yosh! I'm starved!"

Tsunade chuckled and they walked inside the house.

 


	35. The Dinner

 

* * *

Naruto sighed as he walked down the streets of Konoha. He'd been looking for Sasuke for almost a half hour with no luck.  _"Damn him. Where the hell did he go?"_  He saw Kiba walking by on the other side of the street and suddenly had an idea. "Yo, Kiba!"

Kiba looked over to see Naruto running toward him. "Hey, Naruto."

"You got a few minutes?"

Kiba cocked an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Sasuke's in one of his 'I hate the world' moods and Sakura wants me to calm 'im down. Think you can sniff him out for me?"

Kiba considered this for a moment before shrugging. "I guess so. I got nothin' better to do." A smirk crossed his face. "But you gotta pay me."

"What?-!"

Kiba held out his hand. "Five hundred yen, in advance."

Naruto grumbled under his breath as he fished Gama-chan out of his pouch. "Dirty, stinkin', no good..." He grabbed a few bills and forcefully put them in Kiba's hand. "Here!"

Kiba put the bills in his back pocket. "Nice doin business with ya."

"Yeah yeah. Just get movin'," Naruto said, pointing in a random direction.

Kiba smirked. "You got something of his?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "I got a pen he let me borrow yesterday."

"That'll work. Give it to Akamaru."

Naruto pulled the pen out of one of his pants pockets and put it on the ground. Akamaru sniffed it for a moment and then sniffed Naruto's leg. "Why's he sniffing me?"

"He needs to know which scent to follow, idiot," Kiba explained with impatience.

"Oh."

Akamaru sniffed the ground for a moment, looked up at Kiba, and barked.

"Alright, let's go!" Kiba said. He and Akamaru ran off and Naruto followed.

 

* * *

Sasuke opened the door to his bedroom, sat on the bed, and sighed. He regretted blowing up at TenTen, but she had hit a very big nerve.

Sasuke had laughed a lot with his mother and Itachi. After the clan was killed, laughing reminded Sasuke of the good times. It was so painful for him that he never laughed again.

Sasuke had been more angry with himself, than TenTen, but he'd be damned if he was going to admit to that fact. In his mind, he hadn't been around her enough for her to have the right to an explanation from him.

"Dammit," he said as he laid down. He stared at the ceiling of the dark, barren room and reveled in the solitude.

 

* * *

Naruto looked up at the building they had stopped in front of, pursed his lips in annoyance and held out his hand toward Kiba. "I want my money back."

"Hell no," Kiba said as his hand covered his pocket protectively.

"You didn't do what I paid you for."

"Akamaru's nose is  _never_  wrong," Kiba replied defensively.

Naruto pointed to the building with an incredulous expression. "THIS IS HIS APARTMENT! OF COURSE, HE SMELLS HIM HERE!" he yelled in frustration.

_"Why the hell does he have to be so loud?"_  Kiba thought as he covered his ears. "Active smell is stronger than residual smell, you idiot!"

"Hmpf!" Naruto replied as he folded his arms.

"I don't have time for this. See ya," Kiba said as he walked off.

Naruto stewed for a moment and walked into the building.

 

* * *

Naruto knocked on the door to Sasuke's apartment. There was no answer so he knocked again. Finally to door opened and a very annoyed looking Sasuke appeared. "What?-! Geez, can't you let me sleep?"

Naruto looked surprised. "Since when do you take naps?"

"None of your damn business," Sasuke replied with irritation.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Sakura wanted me to talk to you-Said you were pissed about something."

Sasuke let out a short growl. "Why the hell can't she mind her own business?"

Naruto shrugged. "No idea, but I'm not risking her getting mad at me."

Sasuke smirked. "I guess I don't blame you. Come in."

Sasuke and Naruto walked in and sat down on opposite sides of the couch. "So what pissed you off?" Naruto asked.

"TenTen," Sasuke replied as he stared at the floor.

"TenTen?"

"Yeah. I accidentally...laughed in front of her," Sasuke said with self-loathing.

Naruto's eyes snapped wide as he stared at his brother in shock. He pointed at him. "Y-y-y- _you_  laughed?-!"

"Make a big deal out of it and I'll kick your ass," Sasuke warned, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Okay okay. Yeesh!"

"Anyway, she was going to tell Neji, so I got pissed at her and she kicked me out of her yard." Sasuke left out the part about him choking the poor girl. He didn't feel like getting one of Naruto's over-righteous lectures.

"What's so bad about laughing anyway?" Naruto suddenly asked.

"Itachi..." Sasuke spat.

Naruto's face clouded over. "Oh..."

"After he killed the clan, laughing reminded me of when everything was okay. So I stopped."

Naruto suddenly understood perfectly. "I get it." He stood to leave. "I'll make something up to tell Sakura if you want."

Sasuke allowed himself a slight smile. "Hmpf."

Naruto gave a short nod and a smile, then left the apartment.

 

* * *

**The next day...**

Naruto stood on Sakura's front steps, staring at the doorknob. He hadn't told Sakura, but the idea of meeting her mother made him nervous. After a few moments, he raised his fist and knocked lightly.

"Just a minute!" came Sakura's voice from inside the house. Her face brightened when she saw the identity of her visitor. "Hey, Naruto-kun. You're just in time," she said with a smile.

Naruto smiled and followed Sakura into the house. As he looked around he noticed that Sakura's mother was a neat freak. Not a single sign that people actually lived in the house existed. The colors of the living room were mostly earth tones, with splashes of color here and there in the form of flowers in vases. If it weren't for the photos on the walls he would have thought it was a display house. He shuddered.  _"This is creepy."_

"Mom! Naruto's here!" Sakura called out. A voice replied from upstairs.

"Be right down!" Following her voice, Mrs. Haruno appeared, wearing a medium blue kimono. Her auburn hair was in a bun with hair sticks run through it.

Sakura's eye twitched. "Mom? What are you wearing?" she whispered sharply once her mother had reached her position.

Mrs. Haruno bent over and whispered to her daughter out of the side of her mouth. "You don't make an important apology in casual clothes!"

Sakura sweatdropped. "Right. Eh hem. Naruto-kun, my Mom-Mom, Naruto-kun."

Mrs. Haruno beamed brightly at Naruto. "Welcome, Naruto-sama," she said with a low bow.

"Sama?" Naruto asked with confusion.

"Well, you are the son of the Hokage," Mrs. Haruno explained.

Naruto's face darkened. "Oh...I get it." He looked at Sakura. "I'll see you at mission assignments tomorrow," he said as he began to leave.

"Naruto-sama, what's wrong?" Mrs. Haruno asked.

Naruto sighed. "First of all, it's 'kun', and second, I don't like fakes," he said sadly.

"What?" Mrs. Haruno said with a confused frown.

"You're just being nice to me because I'm the Godaime's son."

Mrs. Haruno's face softened and had a touch of sadness to it.

"Naruto!" Sakura said sharply.

Mrs. Haruno looked at her daughter. "No, Sakura...it's alright. I don't blame him for thinking that." She turned back to Naruto. "Naruto-kun, I invited you to dinner because I truly am sorry for the past, you're being the Hokage's son has nothing to do with it. I only used 'sama' because I thought it was proper." She bowed a second time. "Please forgive me."

Naruto didn't bother to hide his surprise and after a moment, he smiled. "It's okay. I guess I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

Mrs. Haruno stood straight. "Well then, shall we get started?"

Naruto nodded. "Nhm."

"Sakura, would you please set the table for me?"

"Sure," Sakura said with a smile.

"Naruto-kun, from what Sakura tells me, you are a fine young man who cares very much about the people close to you. I wish I had taken the time to face my fears and see it for myself before now. I'm ashamed and, I'm sorry." Tears brimmed Mrs. Haruno's eyes. "So very sorry," she said as she hugged him warmly.

Naruto hugged her back. "Thank you. You really have no idea how much that means to me."

Mrs. Haruno released him from the hug, wiped her eyes, and smiled brightly. "Now, come into the dining room. I have a surprise for you," she said with a wink.

Naruto followed her and when his eyes rested on the table they widened to their full capacity. No less than five kinds of ramen were spread out in front of him. In other, smaller bowls, were several kinds of add-ins...including Naruto.

Mrs. Haruno smiled warmly at her guest's expression. "Have a seat."

Naruto quickly obeyed. "Itadakimasu!" he shouted as he began serving himself.

Sakura and her mother giggled and took their seats.

 

* * *

Naruto placed his empty bowl in front of the serving dishes and began to fill it again. Mrs. Haruno's eyes widened in surprise.  _"Does this child ever eat?"_

Sakura giggled at her mother's expression. She knew exactly what she was thinking. "He eats like that all the time, Mom."

Mrs. Haruno shot her daughter a look of utter disbelief. "How exactly is he not a blimp?"

Sakura looked thoughtful as she pondered her mother's question. "It probably has something to do with the Kyuubi's chakra."

Naruto paused in the middle of his eating. It was odd to hear people talk about the Kyuubi so casually in front of him.

"I thought the Kyuubi was dead?" Mrs. Haruno asked.

"He is, but he left behind some of his chakra," Sakura explained.

"Ahhh. I see. Naruto-kun, we've rented a movie. Would you like to stay and watch it with us?" Mrs. Haruno asked.

Naruto slurped up the last of the noodles he had paused on. "Thanks, but I told Hina-chan we'd take a walk later."

"Hina-chan? You mean Hyuuga Hinata?"

Naruto nodded.

"How did you get that stuffy Hiashi to let you date his daughter?" Mrs. Haruno asked with a slight giggle.

"Naruto grinned. "I didn't. Ba...urm...Kaa-san told him to leave us alone."

Mrs. Haruno burst out laughing. "It's about time someone put that snob in his place."

Now Naruto laughed.

**"Your friend's mother is certainly a healthy female, isn't she?"**  Kyuubi suddenly said in a voice dripping with lust.

Naruto promptly choked on the bite of ramen he was eating. Sakura stood and began patting his back. "Naruto-kun, are you alright?"

When he finished coughing Naruto held up a finger. "Yeah, can you excuse me a minute?"

Mrs. Haruno blinked. "Certainly."

As soon as Naruto thought he was out of earshot his face became angry. "That is Sakura's _mom_ you disgusting kitsune!"

Kyuubi audibly smirked.  **"When a kitsune is in heat, boy, a female is a female. As long as mating is possible, we don't care."**

"Wait, how the hell would it be possible for you to do 'that' with a human?"

**"It's not. But anything you do while I'm here, I feel."**

Naruto's eyes shot wide and he nearly threw up. "UGH! How can you think like that!-?"

**"Like I said, brat, I'm in heat."**

"Well, you can just deal without, Baka Kitsune. I'm not doing that until I'm sixteen," Naruto spat.

**"Heh. You can always resort to your usual tactics to release the sexual tension."**

"What do you mean? My usual..." Naruto suddenly felt sick to his stomach and his face paled. "You...you mean...e...every time I...You...?"

Kyuubi smirked.  **"Yup."**

Naruto was instantly on his knees, throwing up. Sakura and her mother burst in from the dining room.

"Naruto-kun!" Sakura yelled.

"I'm sorry...about the mess," Naruto said weakly.

"Never mind that! Are you okay?" Sakura asked.

"It wasn't my cooking, was it?" Mrs. Haruno asked with worry in her voice.

Naruto shook his head. "No. If you can get me some supplies, I can clean this up."

"Don't you even think about it, young man. You go straight home and get some rest," Mrs. Haruno replied with a stern tone.

Naruto smiled and stood up. "Thank you. Can I use your bathroom?"

"Sure. It's down past the dining room on the right," Sakura replied.

"Thanks."

 

* * *

As Naruto walked home, he was lucky no one was on the road to witness the very strange sight of him cursing, out loud, to no one. "Do you have any fucking idea how grossed out I am right now!-?"

Kyuubi laughed.  **"Not my problem, Brat. But if you want to spend the remaining six days I have here bitching about it then that's fine with me."**

Naruto growled. "I thought you came here to help me! Why the hell are you being such an asshole!-?"

Kyuubi laughed.  **"Because I _am_ an asshole, Brat, get used to it. I ain't gonna turn into frickin' fluffy bunny just because I respect you."**

"N...Naruto-kun?"

Naruto turned around to find Hinata standing behind him. "Hina-chan?"

"Y...you went past my house. Weren't we supposed to take a walk?" Hinata asked, tentatively.

"Oh! Right. Sorry, Hina-chan. I guess I got caught up in my thoughts."

"Is that why you were yelling like that?" Hinata asked as she looked at the ground.

Naruto turned red and waved his hands in front of him. "No no no. I was yelling at Kyuubi."

"Oh...about what?"

Naruto's blush became a brilliant shade of crimson. "Uh, n...nothing you need to worry about."

**"So...this your mate?"**  Kyuubi asked casually.

Naruto's eyes widened. "Shut up!" he whispered harshly through the side of his mouth.

"Naruto-kun?"

"Sorry. He just won't shut up," Naruto replied with a nervous laugh.

"We should get going. It's getting late," Hinata pointed out.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah." He took her arm and the two began to walk.

 

* * *

Hinata fell back to the grass, gasping for breath. They had been training for an hour now but she still hadn't managed to hit him once. "I just can't do it, Naruto-kun."

Naruto sat down next to her. "Yes, you can. Just concentrate."

**"She's afraid of hurting you."**

"What?" Naruto asked.

**"You _can_  just think your words to me, you know,"** Kyuubi said in an amused tone.

"Oh."

**"If you watch her moves carefully, whenever she's about to make a serious contact blow, she backs off."**

_"Are you sure?"_

**"Completely."**

"Naruto-kun?"

"Sorry." Naruto paused. "You know...you don't have to worry about hurting me"

Hinata's eyes widened a bit, then softened. "I..."

"I'm pretty tough you know," Naruto said, punching his own chest.

"I know, it's just  _(("NO! No PLEASE!" Hinata begged Naruto's lifeless form.))_  ...I've almost seen you d...die so many times...in the last few months..."

Naruto frowned at the tears pricking at the corners of Hinata's eyes. "Hey," he said as he gently lifted her chin. "I'm not going anywhere." He smiled. "That's a promise."

**"I think I'm going to vomit,"**  Kyuubi complained.

Naruto ignored him. "Hey, I noticed you haven't been going to the lessons with Kaa-san lately."

"I decided to stop taking them. It was too hard for me to keep up with Sakura."

"I thought you were doing great," Naruto replied sadly.

"You don't understand. Sakura has the most amazing chakra control I've ever seen. Even Kurenai-sensei would have trouble staying at her pace," Hinata said, matter-of-factly.

"Really?"

"Nhm. But I still want to try something else. I just haven't picked anything yet."

"You'll find something. I'm sure of it."

Hinata looked up at that million dollar smile of his and couldn't help but reply with one of her own. "Yes. Can we try again? No holding back?"

Naruto grinned. "You got it.

They stood up and slipped into their respective stances.

 

* * *

Jiraiya sighed for what seemed like the tenth time and it was beginning to get on Tsunade's nerves. "Well?" she asked curtly while tapping her foot on the floor of her home office.

"The only solution I have is one I really don't like." Jiraiya got up from the chair he'd been sitting in and walked over to stare out the window. "It would involve taking him with me."

Tsunade was a bit startled. "For how long?"

"Considering his learning curve?...about six months," Jiraiya answered as he turned around towards Tsunade again.

Tsunade folded her arms. "Hmmm. I don't know that I like the idea of him being around your perverted mind for that long."

Jiraiya chuckled. "Trust me, Tsu-chan (Tsunade winced at his childhood nickname for her), if anything, he keeps me from doing my research at every turn."

"Don't call me Tsu-chan! How many times do I have to tell you that?" Tsunade said with a threatening fist. She sighed and regained her composure. "All kidding aside, I think your idea may be our best option right now. I just don't like the idea of making him leave Hinata for that long."

"He'll be fine," Jiraiya said with a reassuring smile. His smile took on an impish cast. "So, now that that's settled," he sidled up to her and wiggled his eyebrows, "care to join me for some sake?"

Tsunade knew ex- _actly_  what he meant by that offer and she didn't appreciate it one bit. "You...disgusting...PERVERT!" With that last word, Jiraiya sailed out of the office window from one of her massive punches. He hit the ground, rolled onto his back, stared up at the sky and sighed.

"Whoever said love hurts wasn't kidding." After a few moments of waiting for the ability to move again, he got to his feet, wiped the blood from his mouth, and patted the dirt from his clothing. "Well, guess I better go find my brat of a trainee."

 


	36. The Forgotten

 

Hinata sat in the main parlor of her home, waiting for her father. He didn't ask to speak to her in private often and whenever he did, it was about something upsetting. Hiashi walked in and she sat stock straight. "Ohayo, Otousan," she said with a polite bow.

Without a word, Hiashi sat down on the pillow opposite Hinata. After a few moments of watching his child fidget with her hands, he sighed heavily. "Hinata, I have recently received a rather disturbing report from a member of the house staff," he said sternly.

Hinata felt her chest tighten with nervousness. "R...report?"

"Yes. They said you've been hiding something from me. You were seen putting on, a wig," Hiashi said as his eyes narrowed.

Hinata swallowed.

"Hinata...is this true?" Hiashi asked as he tapped one finger on his knee.

Hinata looked down. "H...hai, Otousan."

"Take it off," Hiashi commanded, "Now."

Hinata timidly nodded and removed the pins from her wig before sliding it off. Her hair fell to her shoulders in thick, blue-black ripples. Her heart pounded painfully in her chest as she stared at the floor, waiting for the venomous chastising to begin; when it never came, she chanced a glance upward. What she saw made her jaw drop in shock. There were tears in her father's eyes. "O...Otousan?"

"You...you look just like her," Hiashi said with a shaking voice.

"Her?" Hinata asked quietly.

"Your mother," Hiashi said as he closed his eyes.

Hinata's eyes widened. "I...I look like...Okasan? Is...is that why you didn't want me to grow my hair?"

Hiashi sucked in a deep breath. "Yes. In fact, from the day you were born, I knew that you would be her twin." He was silent for a moment as he chose his next words. "At first, I was happy, but after she died..." Hiashi swallowed. "...I could barely stand to look at you."

Tears began to flow from Hinata's eyes. "I...I see."

"So, I made you cut your hair. Although the pain has lessened in recent years, I knew if you grew your hair long, it would resurface again. However...the result is, apparently...not what I expected."

Silence.

"What I am feeling," He shifted a bit in his seat. He wasn't used to speaking with anyone that way and it made him uncomfortable, "is not the pain I feared, it is pride," Hiashi finished with a small smile.

Hinata's eyes suddenly held hope. "R...really?"

Hiashi nodded. "Pride that my daughter is just as beautiful, as her mother."

"Otousan... Thank you...thank you so much!" Hinata chirped as she hugged her father tightly.

Hiashi was so surprised that his quiet, reserved, and abnormally shy child would do something so bold that, for a moment, his arms stayed at his sides. When he heard the small sobs coming from her, he embraced her gently. "I'm sorry, Hinata. I should have shown pride in you long ago."

After a while, Hiashi cleared his throat, and father and daughter parted. "I do have something else I would like to speak to you about, though."

Hinata resumed her place on the floor pillow she had occupied earlier. "Something else?"

"Naruto..."

Hinata was suddenly a bit nervous again. "Oh..."

"I would like to know what you see in such a boy," Hiashi answered plainly.

Even through her nerves, a blush crept over Hinata's cheeks. "I...I've liked him for a long time. S...so many people don't take the time to see what's inside him."

"Go on," Hiashi said as he folded his arms.

"He has a good heart, he's c...caring, sweet, and he always does his best. Th...that's what I admire about him the most. He never gives up. No m...matter what anyone thinks of him or how bad things get, he keeps on trying." Hinata's voice became a bit quiet. "In fact, b...before he graduated, he tried so hard that...that he...he pretended to smile all the time," Hinata said sadly.

"Pretended...you mean all of his idiotic grins were fake?"

Hinata shook her head. "Not all of them, b...but mostly. I wanted s...so much to talk to him, but I didn't know how. Now that he has friends and family, most of his smiles are real. I...I want to be there to see all those smiles, Otousan. P...please, don't take me away from him," she said as she threw herself into a very low bow.

Hiashi sighed and closed his eyes in thought for a few moments. "Alright."

Hinata looked up from her bow with disbelief and hope.

"I will allow you to see him...for now. But I want to speak to him sometime in the near future. I still consider him rude, loud, and uncivilized. It will take much before I will change that opinion."

Hinata decided two hugs in one day might be pushing it, so instead, she opted for another bow. "Thank you, Otousan. I promise you will not regret it."

"We shall see." Hiashi rose from his seat. "I have a few matters to attend to. I will see you at dinner."

"Hai."

Hiashi began to walk away.

"Otousan?"

"Yes?"

"I...love you," Hinata said in a small voice. Hiashi said nothing in return, but he did smile and nod. Hinata knew that was the best 'I love you too' he could manage, so it made her happy.

As Hinata stepped outside the room she noticed Hanabi standing there with a contemplative look on her small face. "Hanabi-chan?"

Hanabi cocked her head to one side as if sizing up the older girl. "So, father has accepted you."

Hinata made an attempt at a smile. "Yes. At...at least a little."

A smile slowly crept its way onto Hanabi's usually stolid face. She reached up and placed a comforting hand on Hinata's shoulder. "Good...then perhaps I won't have to act like the older sister anymore," she said before turning and walking away.

Hinata smiled as she watched her sister go. Things were finally turning around. Suddenly, being the future clan head didn't seem so daunting.

 

* * *

**"Seriously, brat, you're both healthy humans, and the same age. She would give you strong pups. Why don't you take her?"**

Naruto sat in meditation in front of Kyuubi's cage, wondering why the hell he couldn't seem to find a teacher who wasn't vying for pervert of the year. "Because we're only fourteen, that's why!" he snapped.

The great fox rolled his eyes.  **"You humans and your 'society' rules. We kitsune mate as soon as we are sexually mature."**

Naruto gritted his teeth. "I'm also not married!"

**"Another one of your human idiosyncrasies. For kitsune to be promised to each other we have only to become mates."**

"Will you drop it already!-?"

**"Fine. But you have no idea what you are denying yourself."**

"Heh. I know what I'm denying  _you_ ," Naruto answered with a knowing leer.

Kyuubi growled and laid down in a huff.

"Dammit! You broke my concentration!" Naruto complained after trying to resume his meditation.

 **"I don't think this technique is helping you,"**  Kyuubi stated as he got to his feet.  **"There is something else I want you to work on anyway."**

"What?"

 **"Your ability, or lack thereof, to think well outside of a battle situation,"**  Kyuubi said with a bemused smile.

"Hey!" Naruto shouted.

**"Understand that I think of you as quite intelligent. You are simply socially unpracticed. Not to mention that you are used to blocking things out in order to keep your sanity."**

"What do you mean?"

**"I mean the constant taunting from the adults of your pathetic village, and later, from the children. You've worked hard at perfecting your ability to ignore emotional pain. And although I've noticed you've relaxed a lot since your graduation, very often you still subconsciously ignore about half of what people are saying, hence your inability to know _what_  they were trying to say."**

Naruto's face broke into a huge grin. "What are you talking about? I'm fine," he said with a chuckle.

For the first time since Naruto had begun speaking with the Kyuubi, the giant fox's face wore a look of genuine pity.  **"You can't lie to me, kid. I've seen your memories."**

Naruto's expression made a complete one-eighty. "My memories are none of your business," he growled.

 **"We occupied the same body for thirteen and a half years. I'm more than entitled,"**  Kyuubi answered simply.

Naruto's glare could've turned someone to stone. "I'm going." He concentrated and began to fade.

**"This only proves my point, kid."**

Out of curiosity, Naruto re-solidified. "What point?" he spat.

**"One mention of your older memories and you are prepared to block me out."**

"I'm blocking you out because you looked at my memories without my permission!" Naruto yelled.

**"You didn't get this angry with that pink haired girl."**

"SHE is my friend and was only in here because she was worried about me! You're just nosy!"

**"No...I looked because I had to know what I was dealing with; how to help you. You need to face these memories or one day you will self destruct."**

"Uh uh. They can stay as far in my brain as I can stuff 'em," Naruto retorted.

Kyuubi sighed.  **"I doubt you'll forgive me for this, but since I don't think I can stay much longer it doesn't matter much."** He closed his eyes for a moment and the scenery around them began to ripple.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked with a nervous look as he instinctively took a step backward.

There was a sound that was an odd cross between a crack and a pop just before everything disappeared. Before Naruto had a chance to adjust to the black nothingness, he heard a rapid banging sound as nine doors came from all directions-eight landing across from each other, creating a short hallway with the ninth door capping end. Kyuubi opened his eyes.  **"I've managed to find the doors with the worst memories."**

"Yeah, and you can go through them yourself!" Naruto said as he attempted to leave. Nothing happened. Shock and mild panic showed on his face.

**"I've blocked you from leaving. You won't be going anywhere until you face them."**

"You son of a bitch!"

Kyuubi shook his head.  **"Insulting me will get you nowhere."**

Naruto sat down. "I'll just sit here till you leave. I can last without eating for a day."

**"I'm certain you can...but can you handle being buried alive?"**

Naruto's eyes widened a bit. "What do you mean?"

**"In order to keep you from returning to your conscious mind, I had to put you in a near death state. If someone finds your body, they'll think you've died. I know I don't have to tell you what would happen next..."**

Naruto gritted his teeth in anger. He knew he wouldn't be fighting his way out of this one. After a moment his face softened and his shoulders slumped. "Please..." he asked softly, "Don't make me see these."

Kyuubi truly felt pity for the boy, but he had no choice.  **"I'm sorry, Kid...but this is necessary."**

Naruto's face scrunched up in anger, frustration, and a little bit of fear. He turned toward the doors. There were only nine, but to him, it seemed like the longest hallway in existence. Slowly, he walked over to the front door on the right. His fingers trembled a little as he held them over the knob, but he grasped it firmly, turned it, and stepped through.

**"Good luck, Brat."**

* * *

Naruto blinked rapidly as the light around him slowly faded. He recognized the room he was in immediately. It was the orphanage where he had spent the first three and a half years of his life. After a moment, he noticed a small boy sitting on the bed at the far end of the room. He walked over to him and swallowed. "So...you're me, huh?" The child didn't respond. "You can't hear me, can you?" Silence was his confirmation.

Footsteps sounds from the hallway and a woman in her mid-twenties poked her head into the room. "Naruto-chan, you'd better hurry on to lunch." The boy on the bed sighed and stayed where he was. "You don't want Miyu-san to hit you again, do you?"

Naruto-chan shook his head fervently. "Uh uh."

The woman smiled and held out her hand. "Come on then. I'll walk with you."

Naruto-chan hopped off the bed and left with the woman.

Naruto smiled at the memory, but it quickly faded when he remembered what happened next. "So...this is  _that_  day." He sighed heavily and followed himself and the woman down the hall.

Not far into their walk, the trio was stopped short by a tall woman with black hair, tied up in a bun. Her clothes were completely devoid of cheer. Nothing but dull, greyish tones and sharp lines. "So...late again, are we?" she said with a glare at Naruto-chan.

Naruto-chan hid behind his friend's legs. "G...gomen," he peeped.

"Haruka-san, you tend to your duties, I will take Naruto-chan to lunch," the older woman said with a smile that would've made Itachi run for his life.

Haruka glanced backward nervously at Naruto-chan. "It's no problem, Kikyo-san. I don't mind taking him."

Kikyo glared at Haruka. She knew what she was trying to do. "Do as you are told," she said with a voice that meant there was no way Haruka would win this battle of wills.

"Yes, Kikyo-san."

Naruto-chan's eyes went wide with panic. "Don't leave me, Haruka-nee-san!" he cried as he attached himself to Haruka's leg.

Haruka bit her lower lip. "I don't have a choice, Naruto-chan. Just...be silent, and maybe she won't do anything mean," she whispered. She hugged Naruto quickly and pried him off her leg, running off down the hall before he had a chance to re-attach himself.

Naruto-chan's eyes showed that he was fighting back tears as he took Kikyo's out-stretched hand.

Naruto's fists clenched at his sides. He knew what was coming, and there was nothing,  _nothing_  he could do to stop it.

They came to the top of a long flight of stairs and started to walk down. Naruto-chan made sure to keep his mouth tightly closed. He didn't want to risk a beating. Suddenly, his lower shins hit something, and he went tumbling down the stairs. He hit the floor with a horrible cracking sound.

Kikyo pulled back the leg she had used to trip him and watched the blood slowly leak out of the back of Naruto-chan's head for a moment, before putting on a mask of fear. "Somebody, help!" she screamed with her best performance.

At that second, Haruka came tearing down the hall. "NARUTO-CHAN!"

Kikyo started down the stairs as soon as she saw Haruka. "Hurry, Haruka-san, he's hurt!" she said with practiced tears.

The sad eyes of her boss didn't fool Haruka for a second. She knew  _exactly_  what had happened. "Naruto-chan!" she cried. The boy groaned in pain as she inspected the back of his head. There was a fairly large crack, but she couldn't tell if it went into his skull. "Go get a medical team..." she gave Kikyo a look that made her thoughts  _very_  clear, "...NOW!" she screamed.

Kikyo nodded and ran off.

Haruka was cradling Naruto-chan in her arms. She held a section ripped from her uniform to his wound, but the blood was quickly soaking through. "Why didn't I listen to you? I'm so sorry, Naruto-chan!"

At that moment, the scene before Naruto froze. His younger self had blacked out and heard no more of what was going on around him, so his mind had nothing to extrapolate from.

He allowed himself a small smile. He'd forgotten how kind Haruka had been. In fact, it was her kindness that had acted as a safety net for his heart. It was also not long after that incident that she had finally gone to the third and told him of Kikyo's cruelty. Four days after that, he was given a room at the Hokage tower. He didn't get to see the third much, and the Gennin and Chuunin that were told to look after him weren't very kind, but at least he hadn't had to fear for his safety any longer. "Thank you," Naruto said to the image as it faded away.

* * *

**"Welcome back."**

Naruto looked behind him to find Kyuubi. "Yeah," he said quietly.

**"Better get to the next one. I don't know how long you have."**

Naruto nodded numbly and reached for the next doorknob.

 

* * *

Six doors later, Naruto was getting tired. He sat on the floor of the hallway, breathing slowly.

 **"Come one, Brat. You only have two more to go,"**  Kyuubi gently prodded.

Naruto sighed and got to his feet. "Fine." He opened the next door and was surrounded in the now familiar white light.

 

* * *

Naruto's heart was beating like a jackhammer. Only one more door till the last, and he had a feeling that last door would hold something so awful that he had managed to block it out completely. He was not looking forward to seeing it. But, for now, he dealt with the present.

He saw his eight-year-old self walking home. This was a day he remembered clearly. It was the first day at his new apartment. He remembered how proud of himself he had been, that the Hokage had allowed him to live alone at that age. Granted, someone checked up on him a few times through the day, and he spent his lunches with the third, but it was still exciting. He followed himself to the apartment and gritted his teeth. This was also the day...he had learned that a lot more people hated him than he'd realized.

Across young Naruto's door, "Monster!" had been spray-painted in a horribly accurate blood red. The door was intact, but someone had picked the lock because it hung open a crack. A horrified look came across the young boy's face as he bolted inside the apartment. Who could have done this? Were his belongings intact?

The bag he'd been carrying his academy books in fell to the floor as he took in the scene in front of him. Everything was in ruins. There wasn't a thing in his home that hadn't been broken or vandalized. His dinner table was cracked in half, his clothes were scattered everywhere and ripped, all of his mangas had the pages torn out, and the only gift he'd ever gotten, a set of orange ramen bowls the Hokage had gotten him as a housewarming present, was smashed into hundreds of pieces.

He suddenly noticed a somewhat 'clear' spot on the floor and flipped the light switch to see why. His eyes went wide at the message that had been spelled out on the floor with the remnants of his kitchen chairs..."DIE!" The poor child dropped to his knees and cried loudly, then the scene faded away.

 

* * *

Naruto swallowed as he gripped the handle of the final door. There were no other really bad memories he could recall, and that made him nervous. He let out a deep breath and walked through.

 

* * *

For the first time since he had begun this odd journey, Naruto had no idea where he was. His nine-year-old self was walking along in front of him. It was dark...lots of trees...a dirt path...a small house about a hundred feet away... "Oh right...Haruka-nee-chan's place. Wait...when did I come back here? I never saw her after the third came to pick me up." And yet, as Naruto watched himself walk, he felt as though something was telling him to run away as fast as he could and never look back.

Suddenly, three shadows came out of nowhere and descended on the younger Naruto. Naruto could do nothing, but watch as the boy screamed while being hit over and over.

Finally, a fourth shadow appeared. It bent over and lit a match, which in turn, lit a lantern. The lantern was placed on a rock and the eerily under-lit face of Kikyo was instantly recognizable.

"K...Kikyo?"

"I've been waiting for this..." Kikyo said in a dangerous tone. "Waited for the right moment to strike; For...FIVE...LONG...YEARS!" she yelled as she accentuated each word with a neck-whipping close-fisted slap to his face. "You little piece of trash. My life was RUINED because of you!" She punched him hard in the gut. He doubled over and spat out blood. "I was fired!-Lost my license, and for WHAT? To protect someone not worth SPITTING ON!" She kicked him in the shoulder.

Her helpers held young Naruto down as Kikyo picked up a large rock and held it over his head. "Your worthless existence ends here, MONSTER!" she yelled she heaved the rock forward. Young Naruto squeezed his eyes shut in preparation for the pain.

"NO!" Haruka came running out of the woods and jumped in front of the rock, using her body to shield the boy. The rock fell to the side and her limp body fell heavily over his.

"HARUKA-NEE-SAN!" Naruto screamed. Now he remembered this. All of it. He wished with all his heart for it to be blocked again, but it was not to be.

"Haruka!" Kikyo shrieked. She gritted her teeth. She still wanted to do away with Naruto, but she knew being caught killing someone who was not the demon would be extremely bad. "Let's get out of here. We'll take care of him later."

The attackers once again became shadows and the scene vanished. Naruto didn't bother to leave right away. He fell to his knees and cried in the cold, still darkness.

 

* * *

Naruto paused in front of the green sliding door. He adjusted his grip on the flowers he was holding and walked into a hospital room. A woman of about thirty-five years of age lay on the bed. Her long, red hair was spread out around her head on the pillow.

Naruto swallowed. He walked forward and placed the flowers into the dry vase on her bedside table and filled it with water from the sink.

He placed his hand on hers. As he watched her sleep, tears slowly rolled down his face. "I'm...sorry I forgot about you. I'll never do it again. I'll bring you flowers every week...until you wake up." He released her hand. "Thank you...Haruka-nee-san..."

Naruto walked away, turning and giving her one final smile, before going out the door.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chap will end this. And then it's on to the sequel! Yay:) Hope you all liked that. Please please review. :)


	37. Promise of a Lifetime

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here it is everyone, the final chapter of book one of the COLAD series.

 

 

Naruto's body lay in a small clearing near the training fields as he said goodbye to the Kyuubi. "So...I just wanted to say...thanks. I guess you're not such a bad guy after all," he said with a small smile.

Kyuubi gave Naruto an incredulous look.  **"Of course I'm a bad guy. Haven't you been paying attention? Just because I've decided one of you isn't a waste of skin, doesn't mean I wouldn't kill other humans in a heartbeat."**

Naruto's expression turned sour. "Hmpf! Isn't it time you left?" he said as he folded his arms.

Kyuubi smirked.  **"Good luck..."**  His body began to disappear.  **"...Naruto..."**  he finished as he vanished completely.

Naruto sighed. "I guess that's that," he said as he stared at the once again empty cage. He suddenly heard Hinata's voice.

"Naruto-kun, can you hear me?"

Naruto's eyes blinked rapidly as his consciousness settled itself back into his waking mind. He looked up at his girlfriend. "Yup, I heard ya. I was just saying goodbye to that stupid fox," he said as he sat up.

"Oh...Are you going to miss him?" Hinata asked politely.

"Hell no! That fox is so perverted, he makes Ero-sennin look like a saint!" Naruto said in disgust.

Hinata's eyes widened and she blushed. "I...I see."

"So, what's up?" Naruto asked with a smile.

Hinata was quiet for a moment. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I...wanted to show you something."

Naruto cocked his head to one side. "Hm?"

"B...but first, I wanted to ask you if you like long hair...on girls."

Naruto chuckled. "I don't think there's a guy alive who doesn't."

"Okay..." Hinata said quietly as she reached up to her hair. Very slowly, she took out the pins from her wig. She swallowed and slid it off. As her hair fell downward Naruto looked on in awe. Hinata put the wig on the ground and waited for a reaction.

Naruto couldn't hear much over the sound of the blood pounding in his ears. "Wow..."

"Y...you l...like it?"

"You look...amazing," Naruto breathed.

A wide smile blazed across Hinata's face and she threw her arms around him.

"Naruto!" came Jiraiya's voice from the other side of the field.

Hinata and Naruto broke apart. "Can't you ever respect my privacy?-!" Naruto yelled.

"Ah, sorry sorry. But I have something important to talk to you about," Jiraiya informed the couple as he sat down on the grass alongside them.

"Important?" Naruto repeated.

"Nhm. It's about your niji chakra. Tsunade thinks it's too dangerous for you to practice controlling it while you're still in Konoha. She's asked me to take you somewhere else to train."

"What?-! How long?-!" Naruto said loudly.

"Six months—And there's no getting out of it either," Jiraiya warned when he saw a defiant look enter Naruto's eyes.

Naruto grimaced and looked over at Hinata. He did not like the idea of being apart from her for so long. He noticed she looked like she was about to cry, so he held her.

Jiraiya sighed. "I'll...ah...just leave you two alone for a while. Naruto, meet me at the gates at eight, tomorrow morning."

Naruto nodded and broke the hug. "C'mon," he said as he knelt and grasped her hand, "Let's go do something fun before I have to leave."

Hinata nodded and stood, and the two young ninjas walked off toward town.

 

* * *

He had been standing outside the training grounds for about fifteen minutes, watching TenTen and trying to decide if he really wanted to talk to her. He'd been avoiding her since their argument five days ago. Finally, Sasuke sighed and walked onto the field.

TenTen tensed in irritation when she felt Sasuke's chakra in the vicinity.  _"What the hell does he want?"_

"TenTen," Sasuke said in an effort to get her attention.

TenTen ignored him.  _"Maybe if I don't say anything he'll just get the point and go away,"_  she thought as she tossed another kunai.

Sasuke's eye twitched.  _"Is she ignoring me?"_   "TenTen!" he said a little louder.

TenTen sighed angrily. "What?-!" she spat as she flung her kunai behind her, hitting the target perfectly.

Sasuke arched an eyebrow at the girl's inhuman throwing skill. "I...came to apologize."

TenTen was taken aback by the very idea of Sasuke apologizing, but she kept her composure. "Why?"

Sasuke was confused. "What?"

TenTen took a few steps toward the young Uchiha. "I said why? Why are you apologizing? You honestly think I could be your friend after what you did?"

Sasuke sighed. "Probably not. But I thought if there was the smallest chance...I had to give it a try." He looked at the sky. "In case you haven't noticed, I can count the number of real friends I have on two fingers, so when I actually make a new friend it's kind of rare."

TenTen made a derisive snort. "Gee, I wonder why?" she said sarcastically.

Sasuke frowned. "I guess I deserved that." He shrugged. "Well, anyway, I just thought it'd be nice to have another friend. But since it seems like that's not going to happen, I'll leave you alone." And with that, he began to walk away.

"Why did you get so psycho over one little laugh, anyway?" TenTen asked suddenly, not wanting him to leave just yet.

Sasuke turned around. "The only real answer I can give you...is that it reminded me of something very bad from my past."

"Is it...about your clan?"

Sasuke's eyes darkened and he turned his head away again. "Yeah."

TenTen sighed. "Well, I know what a private guy you are, so I won't ask for the details."

"Thanks," Sasuke answered as he began walking.

"Wait a sec," TenTen said. Sasuke turned around. "Maybe I can give it a shot. Everybody deserves a second chance, right?"

Sasuke closed his eyes for a second and gave the tiniest hint of a smile. "Right."

"Care for a kunai throwing match?" TenTen asked with a grin.

"Sure," Sasuke answered.

 

* * *

"So, where should we go?" Naruto asked Hinata as they strolled down the main street.

"Hmmm. How about dinner?"

"Nah. I wanna do something special." Naruto suddenly snapped his fingers. "I got it!" And before she could say a word, he grabbed Hinata's wrist and pulled her toward the other side of the village.

"Why are we at your house?" Hinata asked.

Naruto smiled. "Just trust me. Stay here. I'll be back in a sec," he said before dashing inside.

 

* * *

Nabiki looked up as Naruto ran past her on the stairs. "Naruto-kun?"

"Oh good! I was hoping you'd be home. Do you have a bathing suit that would fit Hina-chan?"

Nabiki's face twisted in concentration for a moment. "Yeah, I think I do. Why?"

"Remember that cave you showed me last week?"

A grin of understanding spread across Nabiki's face. "Oooooo, she'll  _love_  that! I'll go get the suit. Meet me at the front door."

"Kay!" Naruto chirped before continuing onto his room.

 

* * *

Naruto thundered down the stairs and into the kitchen, filling a backpack with snacks before running back to the living room. Nabiki stood there, holding a violet, one-piece bathing suit. She held it out for him to take. "Here ya go—and behave yourself," she said with a wink.

Naruto turned scarlet and glared at Nabiki. "Why does everyone think I...! Oh never mind," he said, taking the suit and stuffing it into his backpack.

"Get outta here," Nabiki said with a chuckle and a playful slap on his back.

 

* * *

Hinata's face gained a quizzical expression when she saw the backpack her boyfriend was carrying. "What's in there?"

Naruto patted the side of the backpack. "You'll see. It's for where we're going. Come on!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the forest.

 

* * *

After a few minutes of leaping through the trees, Naruto and Hinata landed on the forest floor and began walking.

"Will it take long to get there?" Hinata asked.

Naruto interlaced his fingers with hers. "Nope. Should only be another five minutes."

A tingle went up Hinata's spine as she smiled at the wonderful warmth of Naruto's hand.

The couple came up to a thicket of bushes and Naruto began to lead Hinata through the thinner spots. "Can't we go over these?" Hinata asked as she eyed the tree branches, hoping for an easier route.

"Nope. You have to go through these to get where we're going." Naruto pushed another branch out of his face. "Ya know, this'll probably sound kinda dumb, but I just realized how perfectly...our hands fit together," he said as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "It's nice."

Hinata blushed. "I th...think so too."

Naruto smiled and they came up to a concealed cave mouth. "It's in here. Watch your step," he said as he took out a flashlight.

As they walked, Hinata wondered just what Naruto had planned. The cave itself didn't seem very remarkable. "Naruto-kun...?" she began.

"Wait right there," Naruto interrupted as they stopped at what seemed to be the entrance to a larger cavern.

Hinata watched as he vanished into the darkness, the flashlight her only indication of where he was. She could hear the sound of running water and splashes as Naruto stepped. By this point, she was very tempted to use Byakugan, but she didn't want to spoil the surprise.

"Ready?" Naruto called out excitedly.

"Nhm," Hinata answered in the direction of the bobbing light. In a very short period of time, a second light began to emerge and she heard rocks scraping together. Suddenly, there was a loud crack of rock and a blinding influx of light that temporarily blinded her. When she could finally open her eyes again she gasped. "It's so beautiful!" she exclaimed in awe.

Where once there had been total darkness, there was now a sight that would dazzle just about anyone. It was a huge cavern. Lining the walls and ceiling were gigantic quartz crystals which had all caught the sunlight pouring in through the opening Naruto had made in the wall. The entire area was now lit as bright as day. And, as if that wasn't enough, the water Hinata had heard turned out to be the burbling of around a dozen large hot springs.

Naruto didn't even have to ask if Hinata liked it. Instead, he chuckled, opened the backpack, and held out the bathing suit he'd brought for her. "I thought you might want this," he said with a grin a mile wide.

Hinata looked around her. "Y...yes, but where can I change?" she said with a pink tinge to her cheeks.

Naruto pointed to a large rock jutting out from the floor near the back of the cavern. "Just go behind there. I promise I won't peek," he said with a reassuring smile.

Hinata took the suit and hurried over to the rock. "How did you find this place?" she called out as she began changing her clothes.

"Nabiki-chan showed it to me a week ago," Naruto replied as he put on his swimming trunks. "She said it's the source that feeds the indoor hot spring in my house."

Hinata came out from behind the rock. "How do I look?" she asked nervously.

"G...great," Naruto replied, trying desperately to command his blood to stay inside his nose. He also suddenly felt a bit self-conscious about his own physique, of which there wasn't much to speak of.

"You look nice t...too," Hinata said.

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Thanks, but I'm still pretty scrawny," he said, making a pathetic attempt at a muscle. He patted his bicep. "See? Nothin' there."

Hinata's face suddenly became very serious. She walked over and stood in front of him. "That's not the part of you that I'm in love with," she said as she cupped his face in her hand.

Naruto smiled, shut his eyes and pressed his cheek into her hand with a sigh. "What is it then?" he asked softly. He took his face away from her hand and looked at her. "Why did you pick me?" He shook his head slightly. "I'm not very good looking, I'm a loudmouth, I'm dense, Sakura-chan is always telling me I eat like a pig..."

"Sakura-san is an idiot," Hinata suddenly snapped angrily.

Naruto blinked rapidly in surprise at her Hinata's outburst. "What do you...?"

Hinata suddenly looked a little ashamed of herself. "G...gomen. B...but I really don't think sh...she could be very smart. If she was, I would've lost my chance to be your g...girlfriend a long time ago. You are kind, strong, funny, sweet, _handsome_ (She put careful emphasis on that one), fun, brave...and you never give up. Even before I loved you, I admired you for that." She grabbed his face with both hands. "P...please, don't  _ever_  think I'm wasting my time with you."

"Hina-chan," Naruto whispered just before leaning down and capturing her lips with his own. As they kissed, he suddenly realized that the thought of being without this kind of moment; without being able to kiss her, hold her, or hear her say she loved him, made him feel like he'd been run through by the chidori a thousand times over.

Hinata's eyebrows went up a bit at the suddenness with which Naruto had broken the kiss. "Naruto-kun?" she asked in a concerned voice.

Naruto, hands on Hinata's shoulders, stared at her as though seeing her for the first time. "I love you," he whispered with realization. Hinata made a small gasp and stared at him. Tears of happy disbelief created small rivers down her face. "I sorry I didn't realize it before now," he said, slowly stroking her cheek. "I just thought about what it would be like without you...and suddenly, I couldn't breath." His expression became forlorn and he hugged her tight. "I...I don't wanna go!"

Tears coated Hinata's cheeks. "I don't want you to go either. But we can write...and I'll be here when you get back."

Naruto let out a long sigh. "I know. It's just not the same though."

Hinata gently broke the hug. "Come swim with me. I want to have as much fun as we can before you have to leave."

Naruto smiled and nodded. "Yeah."

They ran to the water's edge and dove in. When he came back to the surface, Naruto jumped into the air with a whoop of joy. "Ah haaaaaa! This feels great!"

Hinata squealed, then giggled as some of the water from Naruto's exuberant display splashed her in the face. Using both hands, she shoved a huge amount of water at her boyfriend.

Naruto threw up his hands to deflect the water as it washed over him. "HA! Take this!" He clasped his hands together and punched the water sideways.

Hinata was knocked completely off her feet. She quickly got up, a determined look on her face. "KAITEN!"

Naruto's eyes widened to full capacity as an enormous deluge of water engulfed him. "AHHHHH!" he yelled as he tried to get away. It was a moment before he came sputtering back up to the surface. "No fair! I can't use jutsu right now!" he yelled with a pouting smile on his face.

Hinata giggled. "Sorry, Naruto-kun. I forgot." Suddenly she was drenched by another large splash.

"A ninja should never be off guard, Hina-chan!" Naruto said with a chuckle.

Hinata splashed him again. And so they continued their water fight, filling the cavern with the sounds of laughter for the rest of the afternoon.

 

* * *

Sakura reached forward and hugged her friend. "Good luck, Naruto-kun."

"Thanks, Sakura-chan."

"Trust in your youth, Naruto-kun! It will not let you down!" Lee said with his nice guy pose.

Naruto snickered. "Sure."

"See you soon, Ototo," Sasuke said with an approving smirk.

"Nhm," Naruto replied.

"Don't let him corrupt you," Tsunade said as she jabbed a thumb in Jiraiya's direction. She gave him a large hug. "I'll miss you, brat."

"You too, Kaa-san."

Tsunade smiled at the rare show of respect. She walked over to Jiraiya and said in a low voice, "You take him to even  _one_  co-ed bathhouse and I'll cut off the top of your skull and use it as a candy dish."

Jiraiya's eyes were wide and the left one twitched as he quickly nodded in agreement.

Hinata stepped forward and pulled Naruto into a loving embrace. "I love you," she said softly while trying to keep her voice from breaking.

Naruto held her tighter. "I love you too." He swallowed. "I'll be back soon...I promise."

Tsunade looked at everyone who had gathered to see Naruto off and jerked her head in the direction of the village, indicating she wanted to give the couple some time alone.

Naruto and Hinata kissed for a long while; when they parted, Naruto drew in a shaky breath. "I have to go."

Hinata sighed. "I know. Please...be safe," Hinata requested, concern clouding her features.

"Hey, c'mon. I'm indestructible," Naruto said with a wide grin.

Hinata allowed herself a small smile. "See you soon."

Naruto gave her one more quick kiss. "You bet."

Hinata watched as the boy she loved slowly disappeared from view and a single tear rolled down her face. She stared at the morning sky. "Please...protect him."

 

Naruto's heart was heavy as he took one last look at his home and the girl he loved. "Soon, Hina-chan...It's the promise of a lifetime."

...END BOOK 1

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a book 2! The sequel picks up after Naruto comes back from his training. It's called "Truth in Dreams" and you can find it in my profile. I think that's it. I've truly enjoyed writing this story for you and I hope you will be with me for the sequel. Thank you for reading. :)


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